Nice To Be Loved
by HosekiDragon
Summary: AU. War threatens Perim. The lives of four young heirs are at stake. Years pass, memories fade. What is left is nothing but the ruins of a once glorious land. COMPLETED!
1. Extraho

**Extraho**

_It began in a dark time._

_Four lives cast into the turning gears of war by Destiny's cruel hand._

_A Golden Chain to bind them…_

_A Brilliant Light to illuminate their way…_

_A Strong Heart to guide them…_

_A Lost Soul to give them purpose…_

_They were hurt terribly and struck back only to fall._

_They lost so much and gained little for it in the end._

_But as surely as they laughed beneath an endless blue sky…_

…_They were never alone. _


	2. Decessio Domus

_Disclaimer: I do not own Chaotic. Please try and remember that this is an _Alternate Universe _fan fiction so not everything lines up exactly with the show. In fact, it's pretty much a completely different story._

_I know the prologue didn't give you much to work with but hopefully this first chapter will set you on the right track. This is gonna be great. And bloody. And full of tears, trauma, love, and hate. It's going to be an emotional roller coaster like there's no tomorrow._

_You have been aptly warned._

* * *

**Decessio Domus**

* * *

-The UnderWorld-

* * *

"_Pack only a few precious trinkets…"_

He hastily grabbed a leather backpack and dropped in several small items from around his room.

"_Leave everything else behind…"_

He paused as he stepped out the door, looking back over his shoulder at the familiar place he'd grown up in. He hoped it would still be here when he came back.

"_Let no one know you are leaving…"_

He forced a smile as he brushed past a couple of servants.

"_And meet me in the throne room before the day begins."_

He shuffled into the vaulted throne room and hovered by the doorway as he watched his father talking with his military commanders.

"Keep our forces focused around the city borders," The King's gravelly voice rumbled, "And post guards around the entrances to the UnderWorld."

"Then it's true…" He whispered and everyone turned to look at him, "There is a war coming…"

"Leave us." Chaor told his commanders and they vanished, leaving the King and the Prince alone, "Cerberus, come here."

The UnderWorld Prince moved slowly across the stone floor. He was skinny for a well-bred UnderWorlder and slightly shorter than most his age. Being the son of the Lord of the UnderWorld, however, made Cerberus a sight to behold.

His blue-black hair had a lightning streak of fire orange through it that magnified the spiky style he wore it in, his skin was smooth and crimson colored, and his eyes were a dark chocolate brown. Long claws sprouted from his fingertips, his hair bristled all the way down his back and down his thick, curling tail where it stopped just short of the blue spikes on the end, and the blue claws at the end of his three toes could easily gouge chunks from the stone beneath his feet. Flattened down both his arms were dark blue spines that could rise up and inject their poison tips into an enemy, his pointed ears were donned with one silver band each, and two magnificent navy blue horns curved up on either side of his head.

"I'd heard rumors about war," The young Prince murmured as he approached his father, dragging his tail behind him, "But I didn't believe them." His deep brown eyes met the hard, electric blue ones of his father, "Do I…really have to go?"

"Yes," Chaor placed his large, clawed hands on his son's shoulders, "I'd rather know my son; the heir to the Throne of the UnderWorld; is somewhere far away and safe then have him in my sights and in Death's grip."

Cerberus allowed a shaky smile to trace his lips.

"Mi' Lords," The Prince looked around and saw H'earring standing in the entrance to the room, "The Gate is ready."

"Go." Chaor rumbled and Cerberus walked away. At the door, he paused and looked back at the only family he had, molten tears shining in his eyes. Then he vanished.

Chaor sighed heavily, feeling a sudden weight settle on his shoulders.

_He's so young…_

* * *

-The OverWorld-

* * *

Fenrir poked his head into Lord Maxxor's study, saw his father hunched over a series of maps, and withdrew, shouldering his pack to head down the hall.

"Leaving without saying good-bye?" Asked the warm voice of his father and the OverWorld Prince whirled around, showing his fangs in a happy grin.

"You were busy, I didn't want to interrupt." Fenrir's hair was jet black with a single string of white that hung down the left side of his face. His eyes were a solid bright blue and his skin was a slightly lighter shade of green than his father's but they both had identical markings on their faces and arms.

"I'm never too busy for my son." Maxxor lifted Fenrir off the floor and into a bone-crushing hug.

"You'll be here when I get back, right?" Fenrir's smile had disappeared when the OverWorld ruler put him down again.

"I'll be right here." Maxxor touched a finger to the left side of his son's chest and Fenrir frowned.

"That's not the same!" The Prince snapped, "Why can't _I_ stay and fight!?"

"We have been over this, Fenrir." Maxxor said as calmly as he could, "You are a _Prince_. Prince's do not _fight_!"

"But you're _King_!" Fenrir cried, eyes blurring with tears, "And _you're_ fighting!"

"I have duties!" Maxxor shouted and Fenrir winced. Maxxor sighed and pulled his son into another hug, "Fenrir, you are too young to understand the responsibilities of a ruler." He smiled softly, "When you are older, you can fight."

"Really?" Fenrir looked up expectantly.

"But for now you're going to the Gate." Maxxor handed his son the backpack that had been abandoned on the floor.

"Okay…" Fenrir swung his bag over his shoulder and then smiled again, "I'll see you when I get back!" And he raced off.

Maxxor ran a hand through the black, streaked white, mess that was his hair and shook his head.

Fenrir was headstrong.

He could take care of himself.

* * *

-The Mipedian Oasis-

* * *

"Anubis! Stop this nonsense!"

"It's not nonsense from where I'm sitting!" The Mipedian Prince crossed his arms across his chest and slammed his scaly tail against the wall.

Anubis was bulky, even for the agile, reptilian Mipedians, but he was adventurous. The Mipedian Prince had the classic, fan-like ears of his race and the familiar slit pupils. But Anubis' face was more humanoid than lizard; a bald head with bronze blades arching over his scalp, down the back of his neck, and stopping in between his shoulder blades. His skin was the sandy brown of most Mipedians, his eyes were a dark emerald, and he had dark brown markings underneath his eyes and across his shoulders. Bronze claws tipped his fingers and large toes and his thick, scaly tail was constantly moving.

"Anubis, it is not _safe_ for you here!" Mudeenu, the Mipedian Lord, let out a frustrated hiss, "There is a _war_ coming!"

"Then don't get involved!" Anubis' emerald eyes pleaded to his father.

"We are _already_ involved!" Mudeenu dropped into a crouch so he was face to face with his son, " I want you to be safe, Anubis, and return so you can take my place someday." The Mipedian lord nuzzled his snout against Anubis' cheek, "I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you. Please, my son, for me."

"Feast when I get back?" Anubis squinted his eyes comically.

"Feast when you get back." Mudeenu confirmed with a nod, "Now move your tail or I'll bite it."

Anubis laughed, showing his prominent lower fangs, and tackled his father to the floor in a hug. After tussling on the stone for a moment, Mudeenu put the young Prince on his feet, hugged him briefly, and shoved him towards the door. Anubis snatched up the bag he'd abandoned and ran out, waving his father good-bye.

Mudeenu's expression became solemn as he son's footsteps vanished down the hall.

The young always seemed to be the ones to suffer most during times of war.

* * *

-The Danian Underground-

* * *

"You're not going to say your farewells?" The guard outside the door asked as she turned away.

"The Queen is busy," Seraphim said quietly, "I'm not going to bother her."

Seraphim was the daughter of the Danian Queen; actually one of many who had attempted to take the position of Princess. Of all the eggs laid by the Queen about a dozen were actually female. The strongest, smartest, and most advanced female was picked as the successor to the throne. Seraphim had been chosen and the rest of the young female Danians…were destroyed. It made the Princess go cold when she thought about how one of those could easily have been her.

Seraphim was a unique Danian; she was one of the few who had two legs instead of the standard six or four but her deviant appearance hindered her little. Her arching golden antennae contrasted sharply with her glowing jade eyes and the crimson tone of her exoskeleton. Ridged silver plating rose along her back, from her wrists, across her legs, and curved from her head like horns. A pair of a pristine, red veined dragonfly wings were folded across her back. She was not a Danian to be trifled with.

"Mi' Lady, if I may…?" The guard spoke up as Seraphim made to leave the hall outside the War Room.

"Speak." The Princess said distractedly.

"You seem to be taking this "transfer" rather well."

"Because the order came from the Queen." Seraphim replied, a shudder rippling down her frame, "Besides," She gave the guard the pleasure of a cold smile, "I think I'd rather like to get out of these tunnels." She flicked her wings at him, held her bag close, and walked with an air of confidence down the hall and around a corner, vanishing from view.

The guard huffed in the silence that followed.

Now he owed his companion money.

* * *

-The Gate-

* * *

Cerberus stepped out of the silver-blue circle that had led him from the Ante Room of the UnderWorld Palace to the place commonly referred to by the Creatures of Perim as "The Gate."

It was nothing but a completely white room that seemed to glow softly. A white couch, a low white table, and a couple of white, plush chairs sat around the room but that was it. A soft ringing noise echoed through the air with every movement, as though the very fabric of the room was created with tiny silver bells.

"Well, looky, looky," Sneered a voice, "If it ain't Kid Chaor!"

Cerberus scowled darkly at the OverWorld Prince Fenrir who was stretched out leisurely on the couch, hands tucked behind his head and bag on the floor beside him. They'd only met once or twice but the two Princes were not exactly on friendly terms. Then again, nor did they consider themselves enemies.

"Hey, hey!" Shouted another voice, this one sounding jubilant, "I thought I was gonna get here first!"

"Don't count on it tubs!" Fenrir snorted, swinging into a sitting position to face the Mipedian Prince as he bounded out of his silver-blue circle, "Oooohhh, looks like I can't call you that anymore!"

"That's right!" Anubis said proudly, sticking his nose in the air and putting his hands on his hips, tail lashing, "I've lost weight!"

"But not ego." Chuckled Seraphim, fluttering out of her own circle as it disappeared behind her, "And neither has Fenrir. Who do you manage to fit yours in a room, OverWorlder?"

"The question is," Fenrir replied cheekily, "How do I fit _this_ in these pa—."

"Heard enough!" Cerberus shouted, the hair on his back standing on end, "Geez, Fenrir, you're such a friggin' pervert!"

"And you're a whiny little baby!" Fenrir retorted hotly, getting to his feet, "You know what, I heard it was _your_ father who started this war! I'll bet _he_ was the one who raided the OverWorld Mugic Library!"

"Never!" Cerberus screamed back as the spines on his arms slowly rose into the air until they were pointing straight out, "It was the OverWorlders! _Your_ father sent some of _his_ men to destroy a _defenseless_ UnderWorld village in a stupid display of power!"

"My father!? _MY_ father!?" Fenrir stomped up to Cerberus, "Let me tell you something you half-baked, fire-eating, ash-licking, son-of-gargoyle!" Cerberus bristled and started growling, eyes glowing red with anger, "My _father_ doesn't give half-a-Mugic about your stupid tribe!" Icy blue met fiery molten red, "Because we live _above_ you!"

Cerberus roared in fury and would have pounced on the OverWorld Prince had Anubis not hooked one arm around the UnderWorlder's waist and grabbed one of his horns with the other, effectively holding him back. Fenrir was under similar circumstances with Seraphim.

"Would you mind putting those nasty spines of yours down, Cerb?" Anubis said calmly, "I really don't want to get poisoned."

"Sorry…" The UnderWorld Prince sighed, relaxing and letting his spines fold back against his arms, "I just…I'm stressed out over this whole stupid war thing. Nobody even knows why it's starting in the first place." His now chocolate eyes glanced at Fenrir, "I'm sorry for what I said, I was out of line."

"Yeah, me too…" Fenrir pushed away from Seraphim.

"I think we're all a little wired." The Danian Princess put in, antennae twitching through the air, "I mean, we have to leave home and go to place we've been—what?—once in our entire lives?"

"Glad to know we're all getting along, then!" A light voice touched with a foreign accent rang out and a section of the wall pushed open as through it were a door though there had been no visible lines there before, "Come on in, kiddies!"

A _human_ stood on the threshold with a grin on his face. He was tall, lanky, and looked about twenty-something as the human calendar went. His black-silver hair was ruffled and some of it fell into his face and there was a black goatee pointed on his chin. Silver and gold rings donned his fingers, he had a tiny, neon green spike ball pierced above his eyebrow, a sapphire stud in his nose, two silver studs on his right cheek, a red and gold lip ring, at least half a dozen other earrings in each ear, and a diamond stud in his tongue that showed only when he spoke.

The man was dressed in a tight, black, long sleeved shirt and a black cloth vest was buttoned over it. His jeans were a dark navy blue and were rolled up just short of his black sneakers. Silver bracelets studded with rubies, sapphires, gold, and topaz jingled on his wrists and ankles and long silver chains were draped around his neck. Everything about this guy screamed bizarre.

"Oh, come _on_!" The man rolled his vibrant, golden eyes and grinned even wider, showing a set of fangs, "I'm not as human as you think!" When nobody moved he waved his hand at them, "Fine, stay in 'ere. See if I care." And he began to shut the door.

The four heirs were inside in a manner of seconds.

"Eh, I thought you'd come to your senses." The man said, "The Gate does some weird things to Creatures. Follow me, mates." He led them down a dark hallway and through the solid, steel door at the end, "Welcome to…Chaotic!"

The room was decent sized, nothing particularly grand. And it was a filthy mess. The floor was concrete, as were the walls and ceiling, but there was a patchwork of rugs and something like carpet samples all over the floor in an attempt to make it more comfortable. Posters were pinned over the walls; some of them were maps, others were of fancy sports cars that were painted in bright colors, but the majority seemed to be of skimpily dressed human woman (Seraphim made a face at these).

Where wall space was not taken up by these images, it was covered in stacks of books, teetering piles of papers, wooden dressers bulging with clothes, or large metal frames piled with drawers, each drawer practically spewing papers. Models dangled from the ceiling next to the naked light bulbs; planes, spaceships, blimps, UFOs, rockets, cars (Anubis did not understand why the man hung these from the ceiling), dragons, Pegasus', bugs, and the occasional fairy.

The man wove them through this maze of messes and into an open area that contained a worn out love seat, three squished looking chairs, a short, stone table littered with papers, writing utensils, empty bags that smelled of food, and a ceramic mug, and what the four recognized as a television screen perched atop a wooden table. It was off at the moment.

"Alright," The man clapped his hands together, looking excited, "I'm Elliot; the only half human, half Creature in existence—don't ask, long story—and I'm the one you have to go through if you want to get to the human world. This," He waved around at the clutter, "Is Chaotic; the limbo passage between worlds; and I'm the only one who can access it! So," He grinned at the four heirs, "Who wants to go first?"

"Uhhhhh…" Came the collective reply.

"Oh yes, of course you're clueless." Elliot snapped his fingers, "But you can use Glamour, can't you mates?"

"G-Glamour?" Fenrir stumbled over the word, "What's that?"

"You probably call it a Disguise now, don't you?" Elliot asked and then frowned when four pairs of eyes were lit with recognition, "The proper term is Glamour. Humans stole the word for those silly fairy tales they created. This," He waved a hand down his front, "Is about as close to Glamour as I can get. Let's see yours, come on."

There was a rushing noise; horns disappeared, tails shrank and twisted away, fangs and claws were shortened into blunt teeth and fingernails, skin and exoskeleton became fleshy and pink, and all other oddities vanished. The four Creatures looked like regular, ten-year old humans.

"Good, that's great!" Elliot seemed genuinely pleased, "Now let's see…" He blinked at Seraphim, "Oh my—put this around you! Now!" He flung a blanket at her and she wrapped it around her shoulders, looking confused.

"If there's one very important thing you guys should know," Elliot's face was red, "It's that humans seeing each other, um, undressed is a very indecent thing! Unless, say you're going to…ahem…but, you're kids, you don't have…to worry…about that." He clapped his hands together, "Alright Seraphim, follow me! You three," He pointed to the boys, "Stay put!" He and the Danian Princess vanished into the mounds of junk.

Fenrir, Anubis, and Cerberus all looked at one another and started laughing. They couldn't help themselves. Humans had such odd features.

As their laughter died, they flopped onto separate seats. Cerberus took a chair to himself, Anubis did as well, and Fenrir took up the couch. They sat in silence for a while until Fenrir got bored, reached out, and started pressing every button on the television. When he finally managed to turn it on, they all jumped. Then they fought over the remote for a whole five minutes—typical male species that they were—and when Anubis won control it took them another five minutes to learn how to work it.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Cerberus snatched the remote away from the Mipedian Prince, returning the growl that Anubis sent him. It sounded odd coming from a human's lips, "Press this one!" He hit a button and the picture on the screen changed. They all jumped again before fighting for control of the remote once more.

"Wow, that looks really immature." Seraphim's voice made them all stop and look up.

The Danian Princess was dressed in a tight red shirt with the word _Fabulous_ etched on it in sparkling silver, a slightly looser white jacket trimmed in black, tight blue jeans with the hems and pockets decorated in odd shapes, and sleek black shoes. Her golden hair swung freely down her back.

Fenrir whistled and raised his eyebrows at her and she gave him the finger in return.

"You guys _really _don't act like ten year olds." Elliot muttered, running a hand through his black-silver hair in an agitated fashion, "No flipping each other off, no cursing, no big words. You're supposed to be ten year old humans so start acting like it!" Fenrir crossed his arms in a sullen sort of way, sank into his chair, screwed his face up into a frown, stuck out his lower lip, and pouted, "_That's_ more like it!" Elliot grabbed Cerberus' wrist, "You're next, UnderWorlder!"

* * *

-Chaotic-

* * *

Half an hour later, the four heirs were dressed and ready to blend in with the humans.

Cerberus' hair was redish with a black streak through it and spiked just the way he liked it. He wore a black, long sleeved shirt, baggy black jeans, and black combat boots. Clamped around his wrists were spike studded black bracelets, the silver bands in his ears had been removed, and a pair of pink tinted glasses were perched on his nose.

Fenrir was clad in a dark gray T-shirt under a bark blue hooded jacket, a thick black wrist watch, a pair of nice blue jeans, and name brand tennis shoes. For some reason, when his Glamour was deployed, the white strand of hair that hung down the side of his face vanished, leaving nothing but a mess of black that occasionally fell into his face.

And Anubis wore a dark navy tank top with a gray and brown jacket whose sleeves stopped just below his elbows, a pair of taupe colored pants, and tennis shoes.

"Alright, sit." Elliot commanded and the four sat, looking a little disgruntled, "You can't go running around the human world with your current identities; humans don't know of the existence of Perim and it's better they don't find out. And anyway, they've taken those names for some of their idiotic religions!" He waved his hand through the air, dismissing what he obviously thought was stupidity, "So here's the thing: memorize every detail, commit it to memory, never forget it. Understood?" There was a chorus of apprehensive yes's and Elliot ran a hand through his silver and black hair again, "Alright, you four were adopted by a kind lady who was nice enough to take in four kids even though she didn't have a husband to help her along. You were home-schooled until she died of heart failure at which point you were shipped off to the private school you'll be staying at for the time you're living in the human world. You," He pointed at Seraphim, "Are Sarah Adams. You," He pointed to Anubis, "Are Peyton Harding," He pointed to Fenrir, "You are Thomas Majors better known as Tom," He pointed to Cerberus, "And last but not least, you're name's Kazdan Kalinkas, or Kaz for short. Are we clear? Repeat to me everything I just told you."

It took almost ten minutes. Fenrir—or Tom—was practically refusing to participate and only a snarling threat from a very irritated Elliot (who almost dropped his Glamour in the process) was enough to get the story to stick.

"Now that you've got those spoiled little brains of yours in the right places," Elliot hissed, his golden eyes seemed to suddenly sparkled with an iridescent blue, "I can get you out of here. Grab the suitcases with your names on them." The four heirs quickly did as they were told, the lengthening of Elliot's fangs giving them enough motivation without his narrowed-eyed glare, "And follow me closely."

The half human, half creature led them through the maze of stuff and to a blank cement wall. Once there, he placed his hand against it and muttered a string of words. The wall flexed and melted into a swirling mass of blue and white light. Elliot stepped into it and, after a split second of hesitation, Fenrir, Anubis, Cereberus, and Seraphim followed behind him.

The portal squeezed shut behind them with a soft rustling noise and everything in Chaotic fell silent.

* * *

_Translations: Extraho- prologue, Decessio Domus- Leaving Home_

_There you have it, the first chapter of Nice To Be Loved. Tell me what you thought: liked it, didn't like it, haven't quite decided yet? Please stick around for the next update._

_Also keep in mind that these chapters are probably going to be a bit longer than my normal chapters because this story is going to __**long**__. Very long and at some points it will push the 'T' rating it's under. I promise you, though, nothing to extremely graphic. If you think it's getting to the point over 'T', just let me know. Note that I rate my writings compared to what else I see under 'T' on this site. So there. XP_

_Thank you so much for reading the first chapter of NTBL! I hope you'll stay tuned for the rest of the thrilling tale! _

_Don't forget to review! Reviews mean more chapters and those really tasty Jolly Rancher Lollipops! Yeah for Jolly Rancher Lollipops! _


	3. Licentia in Carcer

_I keep forgetting that Cerb, Anubis, Seraphim, and Fenrir are ten years old so I'm writing them like they're older. I've fixed most of that up but if it sounds like they're being too mature sometimes I apologize._

* * *

**Licentia in Carcer**

* * *

-The Human World-

* * *

It was the smell of the air that made them realize just how far away from home they were.

The air in Perim, even in the deepest parts of the UnderWorld, was clean of pollution and hideous stenches. But in the human realm they found the sky to be clogged with clouds, the air thick with the smells of garbage and human odor, and the wind was slow and carried on it the disgusting reek of factory smoke that would have been carefully eradicated or contained in Perim.

Cerberus gagged and put his hands over his nose which was sensitive even covered in Glamour. His eyes watered and he coughed. Elliot slapped his back, "Sorry, I should have told you that the human world is a heck of a lot stinker than Perim could ever be." Then he turned towards the mouth of the alley they'd appeared in and beckoned for the four to follow him, "Come on, the school isn't that far away."

Cerberus, Fenrir, Seraphim, and Anubis gazed around them in wonderment. They had only been to the human world once and had been too young to recall much about it. They were fascinated by the steel buildings that rose high above their heads, the cars speeding down the pavement, and the humans they walked among. Everything was so busy; people brushed past them with barely a glance if they spared one at all, cars clogged the streets, lights flashed and voices hummed through the air, and there was a sense of haste emanating from the humans.

They rounded a corner, careful to stick close to one another, and came upon a high stone wall with wrought iron spikes perched evenly across its top. Trees rose above the top of the wall and the zeniths of several buildings were visible among the greenery. Fenrir blinked up at them, wondering, briefly, if it could at all replace the forests that dominated the OverWorld.

Elliot led them to a heavy front gate made of iron and paused in front of a computer screen sticking out of the wall near the door. It looked totally out of place against the red stone of the bricks but the half-Creature paid it no mind and keyed in some information. There was a long pause during which there was much fidgeting from the Glamour covered heirs and then there was an all mighty groan as the doors creaked open and allowed them through.

"This," Elliot made a rather unnecessarily elaborate gesture, "Is the Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy."

The campus was huge; so large, in fact, that the four-some couldn't even see the other end; and all of it was enclosed in the high stone wall. Trees dotted the sidewalk that led from various buildings, students and staff alike made their way along the paths, chatting to one another or just hurrying on their way, bird song occasionally cut into the air, and there was a pseudo-relaxing sort of feeling about the whole place.

"Ah, zee orpheens, yes?" Came a thickly accented female voice and they all looked around. A woman, with dark brown hair that was fading into gray, walked towards them at a brisk pace, her arms clasped around a clipboard and a file bulging with papers. She was dressed in a stiff looking gray suit and had the expression of someone who was extremely busy and had better things to do than be harassed by children.

"You must be Mrs. Saline, am I right?" Elliot smiled in a charming sort of way, "Yes, these four are the orphans registered into the school. And I," He put a hand briefly on his chest, "Am their orderly, so to speak, Elliot Chaotic." He held out a hand which the woman ignored.

"Zay have eerived two days before zee start of school." Mrs. Saline stated, her cold, dark gray eyes boring into Elliot so that the man shifted uncomfortably, "Zat leeves zem two days to geet settled in." She turned her stony gaze on the four and they immediately felt as though they had done something wrong and should be guilty of it, "I am zee Vice Preenciple of zis school and I will have no stoopid theatrics from you. Obey za rules or suffer zee consequences. Am I clear?" They all nodded quickly, "Good. Now here eez a map for eeach of you; zee geerls and boys dorms are located on zee East side of zee campus. Your rooms are marked on zee upper left corner of your reespective maps. Here are zee keeys to your rooms." She dropped a golden key with a numbered key chain into each of their hands, "You may accompany zem if you weesh, Mr. Chaotic, but only to help zem get situated. Zen you weel have to leave." And she stalked off.

"Old bat." Fenrir hissed and Seraphim snorted into her hand, trying not to laugh.

"Alright, that's enough." Elliot passed out the maps, "I can't help you guys with getting to your rooms, I have to get back to Chaotic; it's dangerous to leave it unattended for too long. I hope to see you again soon." He hugged Anubis who gladly returned the gesture, shook hands with Seraphim, ruffled Fenrir's hair playfully, and clasped Cerberus' shoulder for a brief moment, "Good luck, you four. Stay out of trouble."

"Bye Elliot!" Anubis shouted as the man strode back through the gate. As it shut behind him, the fours heirs got the sense that they'd been locked in a prison. Suddenly, campus didn't see so friendly anymore.

"I don't know about you guys," Fenrir huffed, "But I'm sick of standing in the same spot." And he started down the sidewalk, glancing at his map every so often. The others trailed after him, looking around at the scenery and trying to step on the feeling that they were very small and very insignificant. Cerberus hadn't said anything since they left Chaotic.

"Well, would you look at that." Fenrir had stopped before an iron fence that surrounded four, five story buildings. There was another iron fence plus a high hedge of vines and other greenery between the four, "The ones on the left are the girls dorms," Fenrir nodded to the two buildings to their left, "And the ones here are the boys." He glanced up through the fence at the remaining two buildings and scowled at them.

"I guess I'll be seeing you guys." Seraphim chewed on her lip for a moment or two, looking suddenly very vulnerable and very cute, and then turned on her heel and walked away towards the girls dorms. Anubis watched her go, his head tilted to the side slightly.

"I guess…we go in." He finally said and the other two boys agreed, trotting around the side of the fence to the open gate that let them in, "Um…how do we know which building it is."

"Here." Cerberus said softly, pointing at the number in the corner of Anubis' map, "See, it says B-406. "B" means the second building 'cause it's got a "B" on the door and the "4" in front of "406" probably means your on the fourth floor."

"Map says there's showers behind the buildings." Fenrir muttered more to himself than anyone else. Then he looked up, "Guess we'd better go in and stuff…"

The three boys made their way towards the second building. It was tall, being five stories and all, with a large overhang to keep the rain away from the front double doors. There appeared to be windows for every room and, when they entered, the hallways were large enough for two people to pass each other without much shoving or contact whatsoever.

Anubis' room was one of the first ones on the fourth floor and they left him fighting to get his key in the lock. Cerberus trailed dejectedly up the stairs after Fenrir to the fifth floor. Fenrir made no comment but remained just as silent. They were all suffering on the inside.

The OverWorld Prince finally stopped outside of door number 512 and stuck his key into the lock. Cerberus stood miserably behind him, staring at the floor through is pink-tinted glasses. Fenrir looked over his shoulder and scowled at the UnderWorld Prince,

"What do you want? Go find your room, Ce—Kaz."

"This is my room." Cerberus glared at Fenrir, not liking the tone of voice he'd gotten from the other boy, "So move, _Tom_!"

Fenrir looked like he was going to punch Cerberus and then through better of it, stomping into the room. He couldn't stay angry very long through. The room was incredible, too incredible for a couple of ten year olds. There was a living room with U-shaped couch and large television screen with a collection of DVDs already stacked on the shelves around it, an open threshold led into a polished kitchen with a stove and stocked fridge, and two doors on the wall behind the couch that apparently led to the bedrooms.

"You can have the window room." Cerberus said with no emotion and opened the door to the bedroom closest to the door they'd entered and closed it behind him, leaning against the frame with a heavy sigh. This whole place was like a prison that he felt they'd be spending the rest of their lives in.

Still, the bedroom itself wasn't too bad. The floor was a dark blue, squishy carpet, the walls were a comfortable cream color, there was a desk against the far wall, a bed complete with sheets, blankets, and pillow pushed into a corner, an empty shelf to the left of the door, and an empty chest of drawers to his right. Cerberus set his bags down on the bed and started empty their contents. The suitcase from Elliot contained naught but clothes, all in a rather dark scheme at that, so he stowed them away in a more or less organized fashion in the dresser. His own bag, however, made him homesick just to look at. Swallowing thickly, he shoved it far underneath his bed where no one else could find it. Then, after a brief pause, he left the room.

Fenrir was already curled on the couch with his knees drawn up to his chin, gazing in a sort of forlorn way at the blank TV screen. Cerberus plopped down next to him, staring at his boots without really seeing them. Something nagged at the back of his mind.

"Fenrir…why…why do you hate UnderWorlders so much?"

It took a while for the OverWorld Prince to answer, "Father didn't want me to know but I found out." He blinked once, slowly, "Some of Lord Van Bloot's men killed my mother shortly after I was born. She…sacrificed herself to get me to safety. I've hated you ground kissers ever since."

The insult stung Cerberus but he wondered vaguely why Lord Van Bloot would dare attack royalty, especially of the OverWorld variety. Then again, the aerial oriented Creature seemed to have a few screws loose as it was. On the other hand, the same could be said for the UnderWorld's inventor Ulmar. Even Cerberus' mother, Queen Takinom, thought the runty little weirdo was strange.

"So what do we do now?" Fenrir asked in the tone of voice that said he wasn't really expecting an answer.

"I guess…" Cerberus said with a pained sigh, "We wait."

* * *

-The Human World, Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy-

* * *

The two boys spent the remainder of the day pouting in their rooms, sulking in the kitchen, and snapping at each other when ever they saw the other one. They saw nothing of Anubis or Seraphim which was probably for the better as they were at each other's throats as it was.

Sleep was hard to come by.

Cerberus tossed and turned beneath the covers of his bed that night, unable to get comfortable, disconcerted by the pungent order of bleach rising off the sheets, and certainly not warm enough. Being an UnderWorlder, the Prince was used to hot temperatures that rarely cooled but here in the human world the day was pleasant and the night was chilling to the bone.

Fenrir faired no better. Though he put up a tough front, he was as homesick as the rest of them. He cried himself to sleep and suffered nightmares of his father falling in battle.

Neither boy was in the mood to deal with one anther come morning and when they met Seraphim and Anubis outside the dorms, both of them looked as though they'd had a rough night too.

"Anyone know where the food is?" Anubis asked, rubbing his eyes with one hand and massaging his stomach with the other.

"N-no." Seraphim stifled a yawn, "I left my map in my room."

"Mm…" Fenrir grumbled, ruffling his own black hair so that some of it fell into his blue eyes.

"Geez, you guys look like walking dead!" Said a female voice and the four of them looked around to see a girl with short mahogany hair and hazel eyes smiling at them with her head cocked to the side. Behind her stood another girl with long dark brown hair that was tied into a braid.

Fenrir glared at them but the girl ignored his look and skipped up to the group. She thrust her hand out with a huge smile and said, "Hi! I'm Mercedes Ropard but you can call me Mercy!"

"Hi!" Anubis grasped her hand in his and pumped it up and down enthusiastically. When he released her, a low gurgling noise came from his stomach and Mercy and her friend, whom she introduced as Tiffany, giggled.

"Are you hungry?" Mercy asked and Anubis nodded enthusiastically, "Then follow me! I'll show you around!" She grabbed Cerberus' wrist, careful to avoid the spiked bracelet he was wearing, and dragged him down a path. Cerberus' face went bright red.

The cafeteria was a low set building just around the corner from the dorms. Streams of students, from ten years old to eighteen, were already trailing inside its wide double doors. As the group walked inside, Mercy let go of Cerberus and the Prince felt a pang of regret until his nose caught the scent of food. His mouth watered.

It took a while to make it through the line and have their tray loaded with everything they wanted and then took a little while longer to find a place where they could all sit next to one another. Mercy took a seat on Cerberus' right and Fenrir sat on Cerberus' left, Anubis, Seraphim, and Tiffany sitting on the other side of the table.

"So, who're you guys?" Mercy asked past a mouthful of pancake.

"Ce—Kazdan K-Kalinkas. B-but everybody c-calls me Kaz." Cerberus tried to swallow his stutter, he really did, but for some reason he fell apart when it came to girls.

Mercy giggled, "And who's your grumpy looking friend?" She indicated Fenrir with her fork.

"That's Tom."

"And whose the big guy?"

"P-Peyton."

"And who's the pretty girl with blonde hair?"

"Th-that's Sarah."

"Where'd you guys come from? I'm from a little North of here!"

"Um…we…" Cerberus' mind blanked out as he struggled to remember the story Elliot had come up with. Mercy's large hazel eyes gleamed into his own brown ones and he felt the heat rise in his face again, "Ah, um…we were all…a-a-adopted and h-home schooled. S-so when our guardian died I guess the p-people in charge sent us here."

"Awwwwww, I'm sorry!" Mercy sat back, "I didn't know you were orphans!" She stared at her food and then pushed it away, "I'm not hungry anymore." Cerberus blinked at her. She was a strange one, as girls went. Of course, the only other girls he'd ever know were his mother, Takinom, some of the palace guards that were female, and the servants. And they were usually made of some pretty tough stuff.

"Why do wear all black?" Tiffany's eyes were narrowed at Cerberus in a curious sort of way.

"I…dunno…" Cerberus swallowed, not liking the curious stares, and shrank down in his seat, picking at his food.

"Shut up!" Fenrir said in a low voice, glaring over at Tiffany through his black hair, "What's with the twenty questions? Why can't you leave us alone!?"

Everyone stared at Fenrir with wide eyes and shocked expressions but he ignored them and went back to his food. What did they know, anyway?

They were just the scum from another tribe.

And human maggots.

* * *

-The Human World, Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Fifth Grade Class, Two Days Later-

* * *

Anubis decided that he hated school.

There was absolutely no freedom; he was stuck at a plastic desk with a chair that couldn't move for six hours out of a perfectly fine day and had to listen to adults ramble on about things he didn't care about. And when they weren't rambling he was doing work.

Anubis hated work.

There was also this really annoying kid who sat a couple of seats over who seemed to find absolute enjoyment in pulling the pigtails of the girl in front of him. His name, Anubis found out, was Klay. He was a lanky looking brat and not in the scrawny sort of way Cerberus was, this kid was just tall. His hair was a dirty blonde that was swept out of his face, he always had these stupid magenta sunglasses perched on the top of his head, and there was a silver ring in his left ear.

Anubis hated Klay.

There was a girl who was always hanging out with Klay. Anubis thought that, at first, they were siblings, but then realized they weren't. Even brothers and sisters didn't torment other people like that. The girl's name was Krystella and she had dark hair and mean green eyes.

Anubis hated Krystella.

As a result of all this negativity, the Mipedian Prince was in quite a foul mood when lunch time finally came around. He sulked at the table they now shared with Tiffany and Mercy, stuffing his food into his mouth without comment. Then again, everyone seemed to be in a similar mood.

Yes, Anubis hated school.

So when he woke up on Saturday morning and found his roommate sitting on the couch in his pajamas watching cartoons, he grinned, went back into his room, and fell asleep again.

Cerberus, on the other hand, could not fall back asleep. So, while Fenrir was still snoring in the next room, he slipped out the door and into the showers. The heat of the steaming water on his skin was relaxing and he sighed, spitting liquid past his lips. True, he was homesick but he was slowly adjusting to this odd lifestyle.

As he was putting up his spikes in the mirror, his bag of toiletries, wet towel, and bed clothes beside him, he heard someone else enter the shower room. A boy who looked a year or two older than Cerberus with dyed black hair that was streaked with blonde and neon green and had dark blue eyes froze when he caught sight of Cerberus. He wore a ragged T-shirt with the words "My Chemical Romance" emblazed on it, baggy black jeans with holes ripped in all sorts of places, thudding black boots, and a studded black choker. A worn out backpack was slung over his shoulder.

They stared at each other. The other boy's gaze slid over Cerberus' ensemble. The UnderWorld Prince was dressed in dark gray T-shirt that read "Smiley Faces Are Overrated" over which was a black hoody with white stripes. Over his tight black jeans was a black belt with a silver skull on it, and he wore black tennis shoes on his feet. One of the black streaks in his hair, which hadn't been gelled into place, fell between his eyes and he gave an irritated huff, turning away to fix it.

"Dude, midget Goths." Said the older boy with a grin. As he walked closer, Cerberus couldn't stop his nose from wrinkling. He smelled like cigarettes, "Hey man, what's your name?"

"Kaz."

"I'm Aras. Eighth grader. You…fifth?"

"Mm."

"Sweetness." Aras dug into his pockets and pulled out a box of chewing gum. He popped a piece into his mouth and then held the pack out to Cerberus, "Want some. It's 5, Elixir flavor."

Cerberus hesitated and then took a piece. A sweet yet tangy taste exploded into his mouth and he grinned.

"Yeah, thought you'd like that." Aras stashed the gum away, "So, you're really goin' Goth, huh?"

"G-Goth?" Cerberus blinked through his pink-tinted glasses, "Um…yeah…"

"You Vegan?"

"N-no."

"Got friends?"

"Yeah."

"They Goth?"

"No."

"Where ya' from?"

"Nowhere…" Cerberus scooped his stuff up, "I…I'm going. Thanks for the gum." He paused, "Aras."

"You're welcome. Kaz."

Cerberus grinned as he left the showers. After stowing his belongings away (Fenrir was _still_ asleep), he wandered around campus. There were few people out and about this early on a Saturday morning but Cerberus didn't mind; he rather liked the peacefulness of wandering alone.

"Hey!" Someone called right behind him and he jumped about a foot in the air. Laughter, someone helped him to his feet, "Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you! Good morning!" It was Mercy.

"Hi." He couldn't help but smile at her, "What're you doing out here?"

"Talking a walk! You?"

"I took a shower."

Mercy giggled and grabbed his hand. His face burned, "Come on! I wanna show you something!" And she tugged him down the path and into a glass building near the back of the campus, "It's a greenhouse! It's where the school grows plants and stuff!"

Cerberus sneezed as his sensitive nose caught the scent of a dozen different plant species. Mercy didn't seem to notice, she was too busy cooing over a box of flowers. Cerberus stepped up beside her.

"They're called Mums!" She giggled, "They're my second favorites!"

"Which ones are your favorites?" Cerberus garbled out before he could stop himself. He felt his face go even redder.

"These ones! Tulips!" She pointed and Cerberus cocked his head at the flowers, "Which ones do you like, Kaz?"

"Uhhhhmmm…" He looked this way and that, peering at all the plants around him, and finally indicated a plant with a thin stem and redish-pink flowers, "That one. It's got a nice color, like a low fire, and it looks…nice."

"Uh…" Mercy squinted at the label, "It says…P…Pa…Pu…Poo d' arc?" She looked at Cerberus and they both fell about laughing.

"That's Pau d'Arcao, young lady, or _tabebuia impetiginosa_." Said a stern voice and both kids turned around to see a short, rather round woman with short, light brown hair. At first glance, she looked quite stern but after a double take one could see the kindness in her eyes, "And what are you two doing in a greenhouse on a Saturday morning?"

"I was showing Kaz around!" Mercy grabbed Cerberus arm and the heat that rose in his face made him go light headed, "We're both in fifth grade!"

"I'm Mrs. Soon." Said the lady, "but you can call me The Gardner Lady or Mrs. S." she smiled sweetly at them and Cerberus grinned back, still woozy from the blood rush to his head, "Now I'm going to have to ask you to leave, dearies, I've got some work to do."

"Okay! See you!" Mercy waved good-bye and skipped out of the greenhouse, Cerberus swaying along behind her, lost in his head, "Hey Kaz." Mercy's sweet voice brought him back to reality; she was facing him, arms swinging from side to side, "Wanna be friends?"

"F-friends?" Cerberus focused on the word and felt his lips turn up in a huge smile, "Yeah…yeah!" He laughed. Mercy laughed.

It felt good to laugh.

It pushed the homesickness and heartache to the back of his mind.

And he forgot.

They all forgot.

* * *

_Translations: Licentia in Carcer-Freedom in Prison_

_Dun, dun, duuuuunnn! _

_Ominous last words, huh. I like the way it ends though, leaves you hanging, begging for more. _

_Well, I think we've seen some progression here. Klay and Krystella have been introduced and, yes, they're going to be semi-important. I was going to make them brother and sister and then decided against it since I was veering so far from the show already. I've also got a far more important person in play…Mercy. Oooh, she's going to be playing some big roles but not until later. X3_

_Eh, Fenrir and Seraphim were sort of absent from this chapter. I'll try and make up for that next time but it's kind of hard to follow four different stories and I'm mainly going to focus on Cerberus' story. For reasons of my own (cough-fangirl-cough)._

_So anyway, thank you guys for reading and I'll try to keep this going. Please review! Reviews bring more chapters and save Kaz from the horror of no Chaotic!  
Kaz: N-n-n-n-no C-Chaotic!? (faints)_

_Me: Opps…me thinks I killed him… _


	4. Amicitia

_I'm sorry for that April Fool's Day chapter but I'd been planning that for a long time. Here is the _real_ chapter three. _

_So, another chapter of Nice To Be Loved. Nothing quite so…plot changing or dramatic has happened in the first two chapters but that's going to change. Very quickly. _

_You can't stay ten years old forever…

* * *

  
_

**Amicitia

* * *

  
**

-Chaotic, Two Years After the Departure of the Heirs-

* * *

It had been two years and still no word from Perim.

Elliot didn't think the war between the tribes would last much longer. There'd always been some tension and every so often a scuffle would break out among two or three of them but it always cleared up in the end.

But for all four tribes fighting for two years straight? Where was the incentive? What had happened to cause such an unsettling onslaught?

_It's not my business._ Elliot thought firmly, shoving a stack of papers into a filling cabinet and leaning on the drawer to get it to close, _I'm not affiliated with any tribe, I'm just the gatekeeper._ A small breeze lifted the bangs of his black-silver hair and he stiffened, looking around.

Someone was here.

Someone had broken through the Gate and into Chaotic.

An assassin trying to get to one of the heirs? Well that just wouldn't do. Elliot slid silently, slowly through his maze of belongings, keeping an eye out for any sudden movements. He reached the far wall, pressed his hand against it, and whispered an incantation. A brief glow and the entrance into the human world was sealed.

No matter who they were, they weren't leaving Chaotic.

"Iparu…or should I call you Elliot?" A gruff voice chuckled and the guardian spun around, golden eyes flashing as they landed on who had spoken, "The illegitimate half-breed spawn of that fool Najarin and human filth."

Elliot growled, the pupils of his eyes vanishing as the gold in his irises expanded, "You are not allowed to be here." He hissed, voice echoing in a liquid sort of way. The edges of his form rippled, "It is against the Laws of Perim for you to enter Chaotic without consent of myself!"

"Uneducated brat." One of the other figures hissed but was silenced by the leader.

"We are…rewriting the Laws." The first figure sneered, showing rows of jagged teeth, "So, _Iparu_, why don't you just let us through?"

"No." Elliot's form rippled again and he drew back his lips to show pointed fangs.

"Tsk, tsk, such posturing." The voice was mocking, "You have nothing, Iparu, to your name except your shape shifting."

"And you have nothing at all if you believe I will let you into the Human World!" Elliot roared and his body wavered and melted into a crystalline blue, humanoid-form, "Begone!" He spun and vanished in a woosh of displaced air.

The first figure sighed angrily and motioned to the others, "Find him and kill him. I don't care how. Just make sure he's dead." The group spread out, not even bothering to be silent as they tipped over pile of papers and books, knocking them carelessly to the floor.

Elliot, or Iparu, was hiding in a shadowy alcove of books in the form of a black rattlesnake. If one of them was stupid enough to stick their hand in here they'd get a nasty shock. What confused him was why Creatures were in here attacking him in the first place. Having never paid much attention to the tribes, he didn't know what group these guys belonged to. For all he knew, they could be OverWorlders trying to kill the UnderWorld Prince.

The stack of books teetered as one of them thudded by and, with a hiss and a shake of his tail, Elliot launched himself out and sunk his fangs into the stupid Creature. It roared in pain and grabbed his thrashing tail but Elliot's work was done and he slipped out of the Creature's grip like a dribble of water and vanished. He peered around a pile of papers at the Creature and made a satisfied noise to himself as he saw the thing writhing on the ground, unable to breath as the poison worked its way into its system.

_Serves him right._ Elliot sniffed (as much as he could without any physical appearance of a nose), _Now…where are the rest of them? There were…about five, I think. _

He narrowed his golden eyes and slithered to the top of a tower of boxes. Ah, perfect, another Creature was coming to investigate the agony of his fellow. Elliot crouched low on the top of the boxes, his right arm molding silently into a large blade of glinting steel that could cleave through anything.

"Did you really think you could hide up there?" Pain stabbed into Elliot's back and he let out a horrible scream, tumbling off the boxes and pulling several stacks of objects down with him. Dust exploded into the air and when it settled, it found the half-Creature Elliot on his side with a thick spear sticking out of his back.

The Creature who appeared to be the leader of the attackers stepped forward and ripped the spear out. Elliot screamed again and rolled over, swinging up his arm and blasting the Creature with a few hundred bolts of energy.

"You're weak, Iparu." The Creature snarled, smoke rising from burns in his flesh but otherwise unharmed, "You're nothing compared to your father, who, I might mention, is probably dead by now."

Elliot howled in rage and leapt up, shifting into the monstrous form of the OverWorlder Dractyl. Papers rose into the air with the whirlwind created by his enormous wings, file cabinets were knocked on their side, books and boxes were knocked asunder, and his great talons gouged into the cement floor. He let loose a sharp cry, baring a beak full of pointed fangs.

"Dramatic but futile." The Creature murmured and drew a wicked looking dagger from its belt. It's blade gleamed an iridescent blue-silver, the guard was black obsidian from the volcanoes of the UnderWorld, and the hilt was wrapped in thick leather and corded with thin wire to aid in gripping.

Elliot jumped and lashed out with his talons only to let out another agony-filled cry as the dagger slashed the bottom of his feet. The Creature flicked the weapon from its hand and it sped through the air and lodged itself in Elliot's throat.

Elliot froze, Dractyl's eyes widening in shock. Then he began thrashing, power draining with his life as he shrank back into his dominant form.

Indigo blood welled past the blade and dribbled down his chest as he sank to the floor, making horrid, garbled noises.

The golden glow in his eyes dimmed and faded.

After a moment, he stopped moving.

"And so passes Iparu, son of Najarin, Guardian of Chaotic and the Gate." The Creature said in a low voice.

And he reached down and yanked the dagger out.

* * *

-The Human World, Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Four Years After Enrollment-

* * *

He was half awake but snuggled deeper under the covers anyway, pulling them over his head so he could stay in the Land of Dreams a little bit longer. It had been such an interesting dream too…

_Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

"Shut up…" He grumbled, squeezing his eyes shut as though by doing so he could stop the noise.

_Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!_

"Okay already!" Kaz threw the covers off irritably, giving them an extra kick to emphasize how much he'd rather stay in bed. He jammed the button down on his alarm clock and snatched his glasses from the case beside his bed. Running a hand through his bed tousled red and black hair, he stood up and threw his door open, walking across the room to another door. He grabbed the handle and twisted it, barely sticking his head in the room, "Tom! Time to wake up!"

He left the door open a crack, satisfied with the annoyed grunt that came from the semi-darkness within, and made his way over to the kitchen, still in his pajamas. Digging into the freezer, he pulled out a pack of waffles and stuck some in the toaster to heat up. Then he headed back into his room to get dressed.

When Kaz came back out again; wearing a long sleeved black shirt splashed with a crimson, upside down kitty- skull with X's for eyes, baggy black pants, combat boots, and a dark violet collar with a gold tag with a "K" emblazed on it; Tom was in the kitchen, buttering his waffles. The TV was on, playing the news.

"—_to the weather with Dwayne. What do you have for us today, Dwayne?"_ The camera cut to another man in a suit in front of blue screen displaying a map, _"Rain along the coast by mid-afternoon, sorry folks. We, on the other hand, will see nothing but sunshine until evening when the sun sets!"_

"Perfect." Kaz grumbled, mimicking Tom in preparing his breakfast, "Sunshine all day. I just _love_ being locked in a brick room with Mr. Dennett."

Tom snickered, drowning his waffles in syrup. He was dressed in an American Eagle t-shirt, name brand blue jeans, and Nike shoes, "Hey, we still got lunch, right?"

"Oh, tch, yeah, I'm really looking forward to getting pelted with carrots by Klay and Krystella again."

"Fun-sucker. What's got you in a bad mood?"

Kaz sighed heavily, pushing his glasses up his nose with one hand as he squirted cranberry sauce on his own waffles with the other, "Just…some dreams. The weird ones that keep coming back, ya' know?"

"What were they now?" Tom stuck his fork into his mouth, chewed his food, swallowed, and then continued, "Giant bird in the sky? Boiling pits of lava with a bat-thing again?"

"No," Kaz reached into the fridge and poured himself a glass of milk, "Milk?" Tom shook his head, "Anyway, this time it was a castle and it was dark and it was hot, like a summer afternoon, and I was walking down a hall." He sat down at the table but didn't start eating, "I think it was supposed to be night because there was no one else around but I couldn't tell because it was underground."

"How did you know if it was underground if you were in a castle?"

"I just…knew, okay!" Kaz shrugged and started picking at his waffles, "It just kept going; the hallway, I mean, it just kept going on and on and I just kept walking and it never ended. It was kind of creepy but kind of interesting at the same time."

"That's 'cause you're messed up in the head." Tom pointed out with a smile. Kaz rolled his eyes, silently appreciating the effort to make him cheer up. But that's how he was, moody in the morning because he wasn't awake yet and because of the dreams he occasionally had. He passed them off as stress from school but sometimes he did wonder…

"Kaz! Come on! Hurry up and eat! We're gonna be late!"

Kaz jumped and started wolfing down his breakfast. Being late to his first class wasn't the problem; if he and Tom didn't make it to the middle of campus fast enough, they wouldn't have time to hang out with Peyton and Sarah.

* * *

-The Human World, Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, The Ring-

* * *

In the middle of the school's campus was a circle of willow trees around a flat stone worn smooth from years of students sitting on it. It was a popular sight for a meeting but most of those meetings happened around lunch and not early in the morning an hour and half before school started.

The Ring, as it was called, was currently dominated by four teenagers, all of them standing inside the circle of willow trees and enjoying the cool morning air.

"T. G. I. Freaking F." Tom muttered, looking up through the canopy of leaves at the lightening sky, "I can't _wait _for this weekend to start!"

"Yeah, I know what you're planning." Sarah raised an eyebrow in a 'I-know-something-you-don't-know' sort of way, "You're going to sit on your butt and play _God of War II_ until your fingers fall off." Peyton and Kaz snickered at the comment and Tom scowled but there was a smile in his eyes.

They may not have been related by blood but the four orphans were as close as any regular family. They were best friends. All four of them. And even if they couldn't remember much of their past it didn't matter as long as the government program that put them in the school continued to pay for their education, clothing, and whatever else they might need. Or want.

Peyton yawned loudly, stretching his arms out as far as they would go, and flopped onto the stone next to Kaz who made a noise of discontent as he pencil was jostled. Resting on his lap was a sketch book. Peyton peered over his shoulder at the work in progress.

"Hey, sweet hallway, dude." The larger boy commented and Kaz's face was suddenly tinted with a delicate shade of pink, "Is that from another one of your dreams?"

"Yes." Kaz said shortly, "And, no, I don't want to talk about. Every time that comes up you guys all treat it like I've got cancer or something and I'm going to drop dead at any second!" He slapped his sketch book shut, "Give it a rest, would ya'!?"

"Ah-ha!" The four teens jumped as a voice broke into their morning sanctuary, "I thought you'd be in here! Kaz!"

"Aras?" Kaz looked past Peyton and saw the punk kid sticking his head through the sweeping branches of the willow trees, "What's up?"

Aras blew a bubble of hot pink gum and let it pop across his lips with a crack that echoed in the silent air. Then he slurped the treat back into his mouths and commenced chewing on it once again, "Got that stuff you wanted." As the older boy reached into his pockets, he rustled the willow branches and Kaz caught the light scent of cigarettes that always lingered on Aras, "Here!" He tossed a pack of 5 Gum (Lush) to Kaz and the Goth boy caught with a light smile.

"Thanks Aras, I owe you!"

"Nah!" Aras waved his hand in the air as he withdrew from The Ring. His voice faded as he walked away, "Consider this payback for that _Muse_ CD you burned me a couple of weeks ago."

"You make the weirdest friends." Tom muttered, shaking his head, "Come on, let's start heading for the lockers. Unless you _want_ to get trampled…"

"No thanks." Peyton, Sarah, and Kaz all said at the same time and Kaz stood, tucking his pencil behind his ear and his sketchpad under his arm. The four of them stepped out of The Ring and started down the path towards the low building that held their lockers.

"So Kaz, what're you going to do for your English paper?" Sarah asked, her arms swinging easily at her sides as they walked along. When she got no response, she looked around and found the Kaz had stopped a few feet behind them, "Kaz?"

Tom and Peyton followed Sarah as she moved closer. Tom waved his hand in Kaz's face, "Kaz? Helllloooo? You still with us? Hey, Earth to Kazdan!" But Kaz's gaze was fixed somewhere past Tom, a distant look in his eyes, and he was chewing on his lip.

"It's Mercy." Sarah said with a light smile, indicating the mahogany haired girl who was surrounded by a group of friends. They were all giggling over something. Kaz's chocolate eyes were lingering on Mercy's laughter lit features.

"Weelllll," Tom pushed his black hair from the mischievous light glittering in his blue eyes, "She _is_ pretty cute."

"Whoa there, Major T!" Peyton grabbed the back of Tom's shirt as the boy started forward.

"Quit calling me that!" Tom replied with a scowl.

"Ah-ah-ah!" Peyton gently pulled Tom back, "Remember the most sacred law of friendship:" He leaned close and whispered as Mercy and her gang moved on, "Thou shalt not steal the girl thy best friend haseth a crush on!"

But apparently he hadn't been quite quiet enough because Kaz tore his gaze away from Mercy and glared at the two of them, his face turning beet red. Sarah suppressed a snicker.

"Let's just go." He grumbled and stomped off in the direction of the lockers. The building that held all the lockers of every student in the school was low and wide. There were no windows but that hardly mattered. No one stayed in the locker building long if they could help it. It smelled strongly of dirty socks and sickly sweet perfume that had been sprayed too many times and was now embedded permanently into the structure.

Kaz grabbed his shoulder bag from his locker and put his sketchbook inside. Then he grabbed his History text book and stuffed it inside along with his notebook. As he shut his locker and spun about to head for the door again, he slammed right into someone and stumbled backwards.

"Watch where you're going, _Loser_!" It was Klay and his companion Krystella. Kaz gulped; Klay was a bully and he liked to pick on people like Kaz who were different and stood out. Klay hooked his fingers into Kaz's violet collar before the other boy could dodge away, "Apologize, Loser."

That was what Klay named Kaz. Loser. Not Kaz, not Kazdan, not Kalinkas. Loser.

Kaz jerked back and Klay stumbled forward, his fingers still in Kaz's collar. The two boys tripped and fell. Klay, being much taller than Kaz, nearly crushed the other boy.

"Loser Goth!" Klay snapped, getting to his feet, "Show us whatcha' made of!" He clenched a fist.

"Show him, Klay." Krystella urged with a cold smile.

Kaz scrambled upright and bolted, Klay's insults ringing in his ears as he went. He didn't stop running until he'd gotten back to The Ring. Tom, Peyton, and Sarah were already there, waiting for him. They didn't have to ask to know why Kaz was out of breath. Klay and Krystella were jerks to pretty much everybody.

"Just punch 'em in the face." Tom had told Kaz on one occasion.

"What?" Kaz had responded, "And get infected with stupid? I don't think so!"

And so it went. Lunch came and went all too quickly and the brilliant sunlight saw the four-some through the day, winking at them in a teasing fashion through the fluffy clouds.

At the end of the day, Kaz left Tom flirting shamelessly with a couple of giggling preps who would never cast a Goth like him a second glance and trudged up the stairs to the room he and Tom shared. He tossed his homework carelessly on the couch in front of the television and went into his bedroom, stretching his hands to the ceiling as he did so.

Kaz's room had evolved into something of a neat-freak's nightmare over the years. Hardly ever was his bed neatly made; the thick and numerous heavy blankets were usually tossed in something resembling a made bed; and he'd gotten a bookshelf which overflowed and forced stacks of books into corners. Though most of his desk was dominated by a rather nifty computer, there was still space for cluttered, half-finished drawings, half-empty pens, erasers, colored pencils, markers, and stubby pencils to obscure its surface. Clothes that were not exactly tidily folded peeked out of drawers that were not exactly closed, a rack of CDs overflowed against another wall, and sketch books and a couple of pieces of footwear protruded out from under the bed. A couple of posters featuring bands or video games or movies dotted the walls but most of the wall space was dominated by Kaz's own drawings; large pieces he'd done in his sketch books, unfinished rough drawings done on scrap paper, bits of phrases that sounded cool, and random words printed in big, bold, permanent ink on long strips of paper. A stuffed, dark purple cat with X-eyes and stitches over its mouth frowned up at him from his bed.

"Hey there, Faust!" Kaz flopped onto his bed, setting his sketch book on his pillow, and picked the toy up in his hands. When he, Tom, Sarah, and Peyton had been twelve years old they, and the rest of the third grade class, had gone to a fair that had been in town. Kaz had won the little stuffed cat at a booth by throwing darts at balloons and had named it after a necromancer in one of Sarah's anime shows.

"My gosh, what a day." Kaz lay down, tossing the cat up into the air and catching it on its way back down, "Tom's right; T.G.I.F. And what I wouldn't give for a decent meal around here." He rolled over and sat up, setting Faust down and jumping to his feet, "In fact…" His sentence was left unfinished as he strolled out of the bedroom, whistling tunelessly, and into the kitchen. In a moment, he was stirring a pot of homemade noodles and checking the biscuits that were rising in the oven.

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_Translations: Amicitia-Friends_

_A heh…um…please don't kill me. AHHHHH! (ducks many sharp pointed objects) I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I know! I killed Iparu/Elliot b-but I had to! Plot device and all that, you know! Ahhhg! (hides behind a barricade) Now that I'm safe back here…_

_Okay, clearing some things up. In this AU fic, the only Chaotic that exists is the limbo between Earth and Perim; it's not a game it's just sort of a checkpoint that Creatures need permission to pass through. This also applies to the Gate. The Creatures; Fenrir, Anubis, Seraphim, and Cerberus; will not get paired with their humans selves, they _are _their humans selves, so to speak. Their Glamour and fake names are their human guises. Remember, this is an _**Alternate Universe**_ fan fiction._

_Oh yeah, the anime referenced in here is _Shaman King_. I personally have a great dislike of the anime but the manga is cool. Faust is so creepy! _

_As always, thank you so much for reading, please stay tuned, and don't forget to review! Reviews spawn more chapters and maybe even stop all my drabbling! _


	5. Ut Est Laxus?

_Remember, Cerberus, Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim _are_ Kaz, Tom, Peyton, and Sarah. Alright, alright, I'm sorry, I'll stop repeating myself. Umm, to answer some other questions: Maxxor and Chaor have shown up, in the first chapter; Maxxor's Fenrir's father and Chaor is Cerberus' dad. The reason Iparu/Elliot had to die was...I'm not telling yet. As for the fifth tribe...(evil grin)  
_

_Now, fair warning: these chapters (yes, plural) are going to seem like filler but I guarantee to you that they are anything but. Just…watch…and wait…

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**Ut Est Laxus?

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- Edwardian-Leo Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room-

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There was nothing else to do.

There was no where else to go.

His only path was forward but to do that…

The empty space stretched out before him, daunting, teasing, mocking him.

There was nothing out there now but the moment he stepped forward…

But what else could he do? If he backed out now, he would fail everyone. Everyone who'd fought so hard beside him in order to let him through to this point.

It wasn't going to end here.

He wouldn't let that happen.

Kaz titled the analog stick on his Playstation 2 control and leaned forward as he made Sora, the Keyblade Master and main character of _Kingdom Hearts 2_, run into the Great Maw and trigger the 1,000 Heartless Battle.

Sarah's prediction that it would be Tom playing video games all weekend hadn't come true. Tom was sitting in the kitchen at the moment, eating slightly burnt toast and pouting because Kaz wouldn't make him a real breakfast. Kaz wasn't exactly a master chef but he could cook pretty well if he wanted to and he was just as bad as Peyton when it came to combining new foods; though his were certainly less disgusting. Besides, Tom had gotten up before Kaz and Kaz didn't feel like cooking. Saturday mornings were times for laziness and relaxation; Tom could scrounge up his own meal.

"Ha! Snag! And Sparkle Ray! Eat my Keyblade you stupid Heartless!" Kaz stomped a foot enthusiastically on the floor as he used Sora's reaction commands to obliterate his foes, "Rising Sun! Rising Sun! Rising Sun!"

"Easy, Kaz!" Tom walked into the room, licking crumbs off his fingers, "Geez, you'd think you were fighting the final boss the way you're going on!" There was a knock at the door, "I got it."

It was Peyton, looking flushed and excited, "Guys, I just heard!"

"Heard what?" Kaz asked, still concentrating on his game.

"There's a _window_ in the girl's shower rooms!" Peyton grinned.

Kaz looked away from the screen to stare at him with wide eyes and Tom's jaw dropped stupidly. Kaz was so stunned by his friend's words that it wasn't until Sora screamed in defeat and the screen went black that he noticed he'd lost.

"P-Peyton!" He yelped, dropping the controller on the floor, "Why'd you go and say that!?"

"'Cause your expressions were _priceless_!" The larger boy howled with laughter and doubled over in the doorway, slapping his hand on his leg.

"You mean there isn't really a window in the girl's bathroom?" Tom asked with a tone in his voice that was a cross between disgust and disappointment.

"There are _no_ windows in _any_ of the bathrooms!" Kaz knelt down and shut down the Playstation. He'd lost his motivation to play, "What did you really want, Peyton?"

Peyton gasped as he stifled his laughter, "Sarah's waiting for us by the front gate. Or did you forget we were going to Shadowparish today?"

"Crud!" Kaz rocketed to his feet at the same moment Tom slapped himself in the forehead, "I did forget!" The Goth boy looked down at himself, "H-hold on! I'm still wearing my pajamas!" And he bounded into his room, slamming the door shut behind him.

- The Bravura Boulevard, Shadowparish Mall-

Shadowparish was the largest mall within walking distance to Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy; only two blocks away on what was commonly referred to as The Bravura Boulevard. The Boulevard was a collection of shops and restaurants that attracted much public attraction, like a smaller version of the Magnificent Mile in downtown Chicago.

Shadowparish Mall was the popular hangout of the older students at the school; anyone under fourteen years of age was not allowed out of campus by themselves and those under eighteen had to be back to the school before five pm. The Vice Principle was extremely strict about the rules.

Tom, Peyton, and Kaz had met Sarah by the front gate to the school (boys and girls were not allowed to go into each others buildings), swiped their keycards in the computer terminal beside the doors, and ducked outside of campus. They'd talked and laughed as they'd walked down the sidewalks towards The Bravura Boulevard; Peyton relaying the joke he'd pulled on Tom and Kaz, Sarah giggling at them, and Tom and Kaz coming up with flustered and red-faced excuses. When they arrived at the mall, however, Kaz froze in his tracks and stared at the entrance.

"What?" Peyton and Tom said at the same time and looked around to where their friend was staring. Two people were standing by the doors, chatting quietly, but their figures were unmistakable.

Mercy and Tiffany.

"Oh, yeah, I invited Mercy and Tiffany to come along today." Sarah smiled in a way that said she'd had other things in mind when she'd done the invite. She noticed the worried look on Kaz's face, "Something wrong Kaz?" Kaz shook his head, mumbling under his breath, and shoved his hands so deeply into the pockets of his dark blue jeans that his shoulders hunched up to his reddening ears.

Tom rolled his eyes and led them up to the doors. Tiffany saw them first and waved. Tom sent a charismatic smile her way and she crossed her arms in a way that said "I'm totally not into you."

"Hi, Kaz!" Mercy called and Kaz stumbled out a reply. There was a red tint creeping up his neck. Peyton noticed and nudged Tom who, in turn, motioned for Tiffany and Sarah to come closer as they headed inside Shadowparish. Kaz realized that no one was talking to him and looked over his shoulder to see the other four whispering and sniggering. The red slid further up his neck and he glowered at them until they separated.

The group wandered from store to store. The boys all skirted Victoria's Secret—walking past it on the opposite side of the hallway. Tiffany, Tom, and Peyton all lingered outside Hot Topic as Sarah investigated their anime stock and Mercy followed Kaz around; the boy tried to ignore her as he rifled through the fall collection but it was hard. She was just so dang cute! Then it was into places like Banana Republic, Hollister, and Abercrombie and Fitch where Kaz felt so out of place he slunk out under the watchful eye of the cashier, leaving his friends inside. Schuler's was a far better experience for the boy; he lost himself in the bookshelves and had to be dragged out by Tom and Peyton. The girls thought this was hilarious and didn't hesitate to let them know.

It was the group was walking past an ear piercing salon that it happened.

"You know Kaz," Tiffany dropped back to walk next to Kaz who was partially weighed down by a Hot Topic bag and a large Schuler's Books and Music bag, "I think you should get your ears pierced."

"What!?" Kaz nearly dropped his spoils in shock.

"Yeah!" Peyton added enthusiastically, "Come on, my bro! Complete your Gothic ensemble!"

"B-b-but I—!" Kaz stuttered but was interrupted by Sarah,

"At least think about it!" The blonde haired girl turned to Mercy, "What do you think, Mercy?"

"I…um…" Mercy looked at Kaz and their eyes met for a brief moment. The blush that had slowly been ebbing away suddenly flushed Kaz's face a brilliant shade of red, "You could…check it out, Kaz." She smiled, "You might find something you like! Besides, I saw you looking at those skull earrings in Hot Topic!" Kaz's blush reached his ears and they blended in with his vibrant hair.

"Kaz!" Tom stepped in his friend's path before Kaz could rush past the door to the salon, "I _dare_ you!"

Everyone stopped. The other couple of school kids who'd happened to be hanging in Shadowparish as well stopped what they were doing and looked over. _No one_ in Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy turned down a dare; it was like a sacred law of the school among the students. Dares didn't pop up often but when they did they were with good cause. No one dared their friend to do something stupid. Most of the red drained out of Kaz's face in an instant, leaving his cheeks looking slightly pink. He swallowed thickly.

If he chickened out of a dare, he'd be the laughing stock of the school for the rest of his life. Not to mention it'd give Klay the perfect excuse to chase him down, bad mouth him, and then beat him up. But get his ears pierced!? His chocolate eyes looked through his pink tinted glasses, first at Tom and then to the salon and then to his fellow schoolmates. They were all watching him.

"A…alright…" He muttered, "If I…have to…"

"That's the spirit!" Tom shouted and slapped his friend on the back.

"Go get 'em, Kazzy!" Peyton cheered.

"Hey Mercy," Tiffany said to her best friend, "You should go in with him! I bet he'd like some company!"

"What!? But I—!" Mercy's reply was cut off as both she and Kaz were pushed through the doorway. Kaz went ridged and beside him, Mercy started fidgeting. This got them both noticed by one of the employees.

"Can I help you kids?" She asked and Kaz started mumbling an apology and backing out but Mercy grabbed his arm and stopped him. He nearly fell over right then and there.

"My friend," She said to the worker, "He wants to get his ears pierced but he's too scared to say it himself!" Kaz scowled at her and she just giggled.

"Well, you've got nothing to be afraid of." The woman smiled and motioned for them to follow, "You can sit right there, young man, and I'll be with you in a second."

Kaz sat down and glared at his boots. He was going to get Tom and the others back for this if was the last thing he ever did! The woman came back and gently ran her fingers over Kaz's ear. He flushed crimson again.

"Are you sure you didn't mean you want them re-pierced?" The woman asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Your ears have already been pierced, sweetie, in two places." She looked on the other side of his head, "And on the other ear too. They've pretty much closed now but…"

"That's impossible." Kaz turned towards her, "I never had any piercings! Anywhere!" He glanced at Mercy and she shrugged, "Whatever." He settled back, "Just…get it over with." And he squeezed his eyes shut.

-The Bravura Boulevard, Shadowparish Mall-

When Mercy and Kaz; now with two piercings in both ears right through the "old holes", exited the salon, no one was there waiting for them. Tom, Peyton, Sarah, and Tiffany had disappeared.

"Where'd they go?" Mercy was looking this way and that but their friends had vanished. Kaz clenched his fists tighter around his shopping bags and scowled.

_They _planned_ this!_ He thought bitterly, _That's what they were sniggering about when we came inside! They'd been planning this from the beginning! _His brown eyes narrowed behind his glasses, _No…_Sarah_ planned this. Ooooohhh, she's gonna pay!_

"Kaz?" He looked up and his gaze met Mercy's. He quickly looked at her shoulder instead, "Should we go look for them?"

"Uh…y-yeah, I guess…" The boy stood chewing his lip for a moment and then sighed, "I bet you they're in Game Stop. Come on." And he set off, Mercy walking beside him.

"Say Kaz," Mercy was swinging her arms back and forth, gazing off in a spacey sort of way at the ceiling, "Why do you let Klay and Krystella push you around so much?" Kaz nearly tripped over his boots and let out a strangled disgruntled noise. Mercy didn't seem to notice, "They seem to like picking on you. Why don't you just tell Mrs. Saline what they're up to?"

"Tch, and give them the pleasure of knowing I'm wimpy enough to squeal on them! Not a chance!" Kaz snapped, angered by the memories of Klay and Krystella's torments, "One of these days they'll get what's coming to them and they'll be sorry! Karma and all that, you know." Mercy giggled and Kaz felt his face heat up.

"You're a lot of fun, did you know that?" The girl asked, tilting her head to look at him. Her eyes sparkled with the smile that lit her face, "I think that was the first time you've said anything to me without stuttering!"

"I did? I mean, I stutter?"

"Yeah, all the time. Well, when you talk to me, anyway, and your face gets really red! Yeah! Like that!" She gave a short burst of pure laughter and Kaz felt a lump swell in his throat, "But you're not like that when you talk to Sarah."

"W-well, Sarah's like…like…" Kaz struggled to put his thoughts together, "Sarah's more like a…a sister to me than anything."

"That doesn't stop Tom and Peyton flirting with her."

"Eh…I…well Tom's…" Kaz couldn't find a legitimate reason to justify why he wasn't interested in Sarah, "Look, that doesn't matter. Sarah's…Sarah."

"So she's not your type?"

"N-not my t-type!?"

"What kind of girls _do_ you like then?"

"What k-kind of _girls_!? Where is this coming from!?"

"Do you like me?"

"You're all of sudden asking me who I like and then you turn around and ask me if I—what?" Kaz stared at Mercy, suddenly comprehending what she'd asked him. Her face was completely serious. Kaz hadn't realized he had stopped walking until Mercy was in front of him, looking over her shoulder. He ran to catch up with her, "What did you…say?"

"I asked you if you liked me." She was still looking at him and it was slightly disconcerting. Kaz's mouth was dry and he felt hot and tingly all over the place.

"I…Mercy, this was kind of…we're sort of…" He cleared his throat, sorting through a list of "stupid things to say" and "stupider things to say" and opened his mouth to speak again. Unfortunately, Fate chose that moment to have them walk past Yankee Candle,

"Mercy, I think I…ah…ah…" Kaz stopped just past the door to the candle shop, face twisted in a grimace as he tried to fight the inevitable, "Ah…ah…AH-CHOO!" He stumbled sideways and bumped into Mercy and they both sprawled over the back of a nearby chair situated in the middle of the hall for weary shoppers. They ended up hanging upside down, their legs draped over the top and their heads nearly brushing the floor. Kaz blinked a couple of times before realizing he was on top of his companion…and inches away from her face.

Their eyes locked once again.

_Wow…she's really…pretty._ Kaz thought as they stared at each other. Then common sense kicked him in the head.

"Oh geez, I'm sorry!" He tried to scramble off of her while not doing anything "odd" and only managed to get more tangled. His glasses slipped down his nose and bounced to the floor. Oh, this was just perfect. Now he couldn't see either. Kaz was virtually blind without his glasses; his eyesight hadn't been that bad when he'd first enrolled in Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy but as the years had gone by he'd found it had steadily gotten worse.

Now he was tangled upside down in a chair with one of his friends.

_This can't get anymore awkward…_ Kaz thought to himself with an inward sigh.

"Holy—we leave you guys alone for less then five minutes and you're already having a party!"

_Scratch that…_

"How about you quit gawping and help us!" Kaz snapped in the general direction he assumed Tom to be. All he could see were blurry smears of colors and shapes. Someone grabbed him under the arms and hoisted him off of Mercy. He staggered a little bit and then found his balance, "Um, has anyone seen my glasses?" He sniffed and sneezed again but not quite as dramaticly.

"Here you go, Kaz." He heard Mercy's voice, saw the pinkish blur, and reached for it but they were pulled away from his hand. Mercy put his glasses back on his face and Kaz readjusted them, blushing and muttering a quick thanks.

"Told you so." Sarah said and Kaz scowled at her.

"You planned that." He said hotly.

"Don't act like you didn't like spending time with her, dude!" Peyton whispered, nudging Kaz in the side, "Heh, heh! Admit it, you've gotta crush on her like a twitterpated love bug!"

Kaz turned red again but shot a glance at Mercy. She was arguing with Tiffany, trying to convince her friend that there was "nothing going on, it was an accident." Then he looked at the floor between his boots.

He was just so confused. His feelings were a muddled up inside him and his stomach was in uncomfortable knots. The perfectly balanced world of school, work, and play seemed to be suddenly thrown from its equilibrium by one simple factor. A factor in an equation that no one could write down or even understand. The factor: Mercy.

_L equals MK squared._ Sniggered a distant voice in his mind and he mentally shook himself. He had enough problems, what with his dreams and Klay jeering, to bother with this odd sensation that his world had been turned upside down by a girl.

"It's almost 4:15." Sarah was saying, looking at her watch, "We should probably start heading back to campus."

"Right." Tom gave a huffing sigh that tossed his bangs and started towards the main doors, a Game Stop bag swinging from his wrist, "Well, it was fun while it lasted."

"Quit acting like this is the last time you're ever going to be here." Sarah snapped at him playfully. The two started bickering, adding their argument to Mercy and Tiffany's which had somehow changed to the topic of the difference between a handbag and a purse. Kaz preferred to hand back with Peyton on the walk back, discussing the best methods to level up Sora's Final Form in _KH 2_.

Kaz had pushed aside the feelings that had mystified him earlier. They lay forgotten in the back of his and then, as he lay down for sleep that night, faded away. He snuggled deep into the heavy covers of his bed, smiling at the warmth.

A dream grabbed him and pulled him into its depths…

-???-

_**The trees seemed so very big.**_

_**Or maybe he was just short.**_

_**Something fluttered past his nose. A butterfly. But it was like no butterfly he'd ever seen around the campus of school. It was huge with iridescent lilac, cerulean, and jade green wings, long, curling antenna, and had to be at least four inches long. Big. Big butterfly. **_

_**He watched it vanish into the foliage.**_

"_**It's pretty, isn't it, My Lord?" The voice was familiar and yet, not familiar. He looked around and saw…something. Whatever it was, it was blurred as though he was not wearing his glasses but not as badly. The edges of the forest were like that too, now that he noticed. Blurred, some even distorted; almost like water had dripped onto photo paper and smeared the picture printed there.**_

"_**Where is this?" He wanted to say but the words didn't come out. He could not speak.**_

_**Then the world dissolved and he was plunged into the complete and utter blackness that was the deepest form of sleep. **_

In the morning, Kaz would not remember the dream. Only that he had had one and then had lost in the depths of slumber.

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_Translations: Ut Est Laxus? – When Is Later?_

_They got _Kaz_! 4Kids finally posted the latest Chaotic episode and it actually had PLOT! I was all happy for the plot until it got to the plot. Poor H'earring! That's not fair! And then after what Evan said about the M'Arrilians making players do things they would never do I went, "Uh-oh." And based on Kaz's reaction at the end of the episode, I think he made a deal with that M'Arrilian chieftain; probably something like if he does something for them then they'll let H'earring go. Well this just royally sucks. Things are totally falling apart. It looks to me like that future that they saw where Perim was flooded is coming true. What I want to know is, if the M'Arrilians really do have the Cothica like they claim then why are they controlling Creatures to dam up rivers and flood everything when they could probably just use the Cothica to do it? And why do they want to flood Perim anyway? Where's the point in that? Why destroy everything?_

_Okay, sorry, I got carried away with my theories. I…do that a lot. (gasp) Maybe Kaz is being mind controlled! We didn't see his eyes at the end! Oh my gosh, not Kazzer! (slaps myself) Stop ranting!_

_Alright, seriously this time. I had fun writing this chapter and I plan to draw Kaz in his pajamas. (Now that I've said that, I've jinxed myself and will never do it.) Ha, ha. Kaz and Mercy have such an awkward friendship; it's so cute because it's pretty much obvious to everyone else that they've got crushes on each other but it's almost like those two are in denial! (gigglesnort)_

_Anyway, thank you reading! And thank you for all the wonderful people who've reviewed (even on the April Fool's Day chapter)! Please keeping reading! And reviewing! Reviews bring motivation for more chapters and make awesomely super sensationalistic things happen! (When I find out what those things are, I'll let you know.)_

_Dang. That was a long A/N… _


	6. Per A Nebulosus Speculum

_Wondering where I was? Sorry, I ran off on Spring Break without fair warning! So this poor chapter here was sitting unpublished on my USB for almost a week. But have no fear! I have returned!_

_P.S. No, the four heirs cannot use their powers when under Glamour. They simply have heightened senses (Cerberus' sense of smell, for example).

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**Per A Nebulosus Speculum

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-Summer Time, Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, the North end of campus, Pool House-

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Summer time at the school was something of a fiasco-party. Most of the students left to go stay with their family but those whose family lived to far away or had no family stayed behind within the high stone walls of Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy.

Not that there was a shortage of things to do. The school had an indoor and outdoor pool, a track, a baseball field, a football field, and a soccer field. There was also the town around the school to run around in, and shop in, and the playground and the mall to hang out in. Add to that the fact that the students had games and movies of their own to play with in their rooms.

And now that school was out there were other kids from other schools to hang out with. The two other schools at the edges of the town; one was the Public Elementary-Middle School and the other was the Public High School. So when school let out, there were two groups of kids meeting in the middle of town—Publics and Privates. There was a current of alliances, treacheries, betrayals, and mini-wars that raged right under the noses of the grown-ups; groups of Privates ganged up on Publics and vice-versa, sometimes Privates and Publics made a short term alliance to get back at one group or another, or they just left each other well enough alone. For the most part, the two gangs of school kids got along well enough. Some of the Publics even came to the Academy to swim and play sports in the much more "decked-out" fields.

"Of course," Kaz muttered to Peyton as they watched Tom walk around the pool to flirt with a couple of girls from the public high school, "I suppose it helps to have government supplied money when you're trying to pick up chicks."

The four friends were swimming in the outdoor pool, trying to escape the summer heat without being holed up in their rooms. Kaz was currently sitting in the shallows, up to his waist in blissfully cool water; his green-fire swimming trunks swirling around his knees and a cold cup of kiwi and strawberry slushie in his hand. Peyton was next to him in dark red swimming trunks, sunk up to his chin in the pool with a pleasant smirk on his face. Where Sarah and her silver two-piece had gone off to was anyone's guess.

"Oooooohhh, turned doooowwwwn!" Peyton sniggered, frothing bubbles between his lips in the water. Tom looked slightly downtrodden as the two girls he'd attempted to swoon walked away with flicks of their hair.

"Oh well." Kaz shrugged, speaking past the straw in his mouth, "You win some you lose some."

"Life ain't a game, Kazzy!" Peyton replied as Tom trudged around the pool again, water still dripping from the dark blue swimming trunks he wore, "Getting girls is like an art form! Ever wonder why Sarah—whoa! MajorT, watch where you're walkin'!"

Peyton's call came too late. Tom had been looking in another direction (probably checking out another group of girls) and had completely missed the pool noodle lying right in his path. His bare foot hit it, slipped out from underneath him, and sent him off-balance in an instant. He pinwheeled his arms for about half a second, spun on his heel, other leg sticking comically in the air, and did something like a drunken backwards summersault/fall into the deep end of the pool. A tremendous splash erupted from where he hit the water and he came up sputtering and coughing, wiping his eyes and then turning bright red when he'd realized what had happened. He swam back to the snickering Kaz and Peyton followed by the laughter of his fellow swimmers.

"I give you nine points for style," Came a voice from the poolside and the three boys looked around to see Aras sitting on the edge in bright orange swimming trunks and an overly large black shirt with the sleeves ripped off, "Seven points for the size of the splash, and ten points for comic effect."

Peyton slapped a hand over his mouth to stop himself from laughing as Aras kicked his feet through the water, grinning at Tom's disgruntled expression.

"Karma." Kaz chuckled, sucking out the last of his slushie and setting it on the pool edge to dispose of later.

"Yeah, well, "karma" this!" Tom grabbed the back of Kaz's head and pushed his face under the water. Kaz yelped and swallowed a mouthful of water. He coughed as Tom let him go and pushed his sopping bangs from the pink-tinted goggles the covered his eyes and doubled as his glasses.

"You _jerk_!" Kaz shouted and kicked, sending a spray of pool water in Tom's direction. Unfortunately, Peyton was in the way.

"Dude!" The larger boy yelled in playful anger and slapped his hands on the surface of the water, catching both Tom and Kaz with the spray. The three boys howled with laughter in the shallows, shouting and splashing at each other. Even Aras got soaked.

"Hey! Check this out!" Kaz shouted, scrambling out of the pool and over to the diving board. He climbed the ladder and stood out on the edge, moving up and down slightly. Then he jumped, plugging his nose, legs and arms flailing as he shot downwards, "LOOK OUT BEEEELOOOOOOOWWWWWW!"

_SPLASH_! A fountain of spray erupted into the air, tiny droplets sparkling as they caught the sunlight, and then collapsed downward on top of the pool surface. Kaz didn't not resurface. The swimmers towards the deep end of the pool looked down at the water, still half smiling, and Tom stood up, was only reaching his waist in the shallows, and looked around for his best friend. Something swam at him underwater and Kaz popped up right in front of him; his cheeks bulging.

"Kaz, don't you da—!" Too late. Kaz sprayed a mouthful of pool water in Tom's face and gained a shout of disgust and half-laughter from the other boy, "That was _gross_!"

"I'll say! You call that a splash!?" Aras put in, kicking water at Kaz who got it sloshed up his side and soaked his already dripping hair. He shook it, flinging droplets of water in every direction, and then let it fall back down on either side of his face. When it wasn't spiked, Kaz's hair hung down to at least his jaw line.

"I'll show you a splash, dudes!" Peyton jumped out of the pool and followed Kaz's path up the diving board. He perched on the end and jumped, curling his knees up to his chin and wrapping his arms around them, "CANNONBAAAAAAAALLLLLLL!" A wave of water rolled across the whole pool and everyone laughed as Peyton resurface, shaking his head and swimming back to his companions.

"Ten points in everything!" Aras commented, clapping his hands in approval, "Take some lessons, Kaz! Or maybe try a swan dive next time! You're scrawny enough to do it!" This brought another chorus of laughter from the students.

"Maybe you should try _swimming_!" Snapped a familiar voice and Aras yelled in shock as someone pushed him from behind and he fell face first into the pool. Sarah stood where he'd been sitting, hands on her hips and triumphant smile on her face, "_That's_ for making fun of my friends!"

Aras muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "women" but he dragged himself out of the water all the same, his shirt sticking to his chest and his multi-colored hair hanging in dripping strings around his face. He scowled at Sarah and slipped away into the crowd.

"Whoa," Tom's eyebrows had almost disappeared into his bangs, "Remind me never to piss you off." Kaz and Peyton nodded in quick agreement.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, the North end of campus, Pool House Locker Rooms-

Tom stepped out of the locker rooms, wearing a tank top and cut-offs, and draped his damp towel around his neck with a sigh. His hair was still a little wet and hanging in his face but he didn't mind. Swimming in the pool for almost three hours straight had been wonderfully relaxing. The boy walked around the back corner of the Pool House Locker Rooms to take the shady back way around campus and immediately backpedaled.

Kaz and Sarah were standing under the shade of a nearby tree, talking to one another. Tom put his back to the wall and strained his ears, listening.

"—don't mean it to sound that way!" Kaz was saying in a flustered voice, "I can't…what I'm trying to say is…forget it, I don't even know!"

"Kaz, wait!" Footsteps stopped at Sarah's words, "If you need to, you can talk to me, okay."

"I'm just scared Tom and Peyton are gonna freak out or laugh at me." Kaz responded. Tom's brow furrowed, "That's what they always do. Tom hardly ever listens when I'm trying to talk to him anyway."

"They're guys. Guys don't listen very well to anyone—no offense."

"None taken." A sigh, probably from Kaz, "They just keeping coming back, Sarah, and they're always different. Sometimes I know I dream but I don't remember it. This is stupid! They're dreams! Who…who cares!"

"Well obviously you do! Look, I know Peyton's to easy going to get worked up about something and Tom's a stuck-up flirt," Tom mouthed the words "stuck-up flirt" with a frown, "But they're you're friends too! Maybe all you really need to do is _talk_!" Sarah's voice softened, "Kaz, you're a great guy; you're friendly, you get along with pretty much everyone, you're an artist, and you can _cook_! Mercy's a lucky girl."

"Sarah, that's really nice and—MERCY!? When did Mercy come into this!?"

"Quit trying to hide it, Kaz, everyone knows."

"Now hold on just a second!" Kaz sounded genuinely angry, "This isn't about me and Mercy! You're just as bad as Tom and Peyton! I can't talk to any of you guys!" Footsteps stomped away and there was silence.

Tom felt a mix of emotions; he was angry at Kaz for saying those things but he also felt terrible that he hadn't been there for his friend when Kaz needed him. He put his head back against the wall and stared up at the blue sky overhead. After a moment, he heard Sarah's footsteps walking away as well. Suddenly feeling alone in a world that was way too big for him, Tom took the sunny, open paths across campus to the dorms.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's room-

Tom listened at the door to their room. The TV was on, that was for sure, but whether Kaz was watching it or just had it on as background noise was yet to be seen. Tom put the key in the lock and opened the door.

Nope, no red-head on the couch. But there was a delicious smell coming from the kitchen. And that meant only one thing; Kaz was cooking. If he wasn't drawing to feed his emotions out onto the paper he cooked. Though it was anyone's guess how cooking made him relax.

Tom tossed his swim things into his room and then walked slowly into the kitchen. Kaz was skipping between the stove, the fridge, and the counter with an irritated expression. It was hard to get Kaz mad at anyone or thing—he was just that kind of person—but getting him out of that foul temper was something else completely. Kaz could easily stay moody for the rest of the day.

"Um…Kaz, you okay?" No answer. Tom eased into a chair at the dining table, fidgeting nervously, "So…whatcha' makin'?"

Kaz didn't say anything at first, just slammed a plate down in front of Tom and turned back to the ingredients strewn across the countertop, "California Pizza. Enjoy." His voice was venomous.

Tom picked up a piece of the pizza, eyed in a scrutinizing fashion, and then took a bite. It was an odd taste, a bit like baked fruit and vegetables drowned in cheese, but there was something else about that made Tom raise his eyebrows; a sharp flavor that mingled with the aftertaste.

"What's in this?" He asked, taking another bite.

"Aside from traditional pizza ingredients?" Kaz still had his back to his friend, busy cleaning up after himself, "Dried oregano leaves, dried basil leaves, chicken, and that fruit on the top is avocado."

"And what's your touch?" Tom licked tomato sauce from his fingers with a knowing smile that was slightly forced. Kaz had a habit of throwing in his own extra ingredient and making Tom the test subject of his experiments. Not all of them were good.

"Cilantro." Responded the bespectacled boy in a voice still brimming with anger, "Zesty stuff." He swept some things into the garbage can and stomped out of the kitchen. There was the sound of channels flipping from the living room, then the clatter of the video cabinet opening. The hiss and click of the DVD player opening and closing and then Kaz came back into the kitchen, grabbed his own plate of California Pizza and left again. Tom watched him go and then looked back at his plate.

_Some pal I am._ He thought bitterly, _I can't even talk to my best friend…_

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, center of campus-

It didn't take long for news to spread over campus: Thomas Majors and Kazdan Kalinkas were fighting.

What had started out as a battle of words had quickly turned into a fist fight. No one was exactly sure what had happened to start the whole thing. Students who had been there when the argument had started said that Tom had tried to talk to Kaz and Kaz had started shouting something about eavesdropping. From there on it had become a screaming match between the both of them until Kaz had completely lost his temper and lashed out. The fight soon had a ring of students around it, jeering and calling and shouting, as Tom and Kaz rolled about on the grass, punching and kicking one another.

"Tom! Kaz! Cut it out!" Peyton pushed his way through the crowd but stopped on the edge of the ring of kids, unwilling to get near those flailing limbs, "Come on, dudes, you're friends! You don't fight!" He went on ignored.

Tom pinned Kaz beneath him, raised a fist, and punched the other boy right in the face. Kaz shouted in pain and hit back. Then the two boys were rolling about again, leaving spots of blood in their wake.

"What iz zeis!?" Came a sharp voice and the student body scattered, disappearing from the fight scene in a manner of seconds and leaving Tom and Kaz on the ground with Peyton and Sarah standing there watching them.

Mrs. Saline strode up and towered over them, "Eenough of zeis! Stop zees insteent!" She grabbed the back of Kaz's shirt as the boy reeled past her and hauled him off of Tom with surprising strength, "What iz going on heere!?"

Kaz and Tom were both panting but Kaz was definitely looking the worse for wear. Tom had a swollen lip, a tear in the knee of his shorts, a bloody nose that splashed crimson down his front, and a cut on his forehead probably from a rock. Kaz, however, was sporting a bruise that was already starting to swell his right eye shut, his glasses where broken and lying on the ground (before Sarah retrieved them), and he was holding his hand over a long, bleeding scratch running down his left arm from the spiked bracelet adorning his right wrist.

"Both of you!" The Vice Principle screeched, grabbing the boys by their upper arms and dragging them behind her, "Come weeth me! We are goeeng to see zee Preenciple!"

Peyton and Sarah watched their friends vanish into the Office Building and glanced at one another. They'd _never_ seen Tom and Kaz—especially Kaz—lash out at anyone in such a violent manner, let alone each other.

They were best friends.

And best friends weren't supposed to get into fist fights.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Office Building, Principle Revil's Office-

Tom was sitting in one chair, with a tissue stuffed up his nose, nursing his swollen lip with a damp washcloth, and a fresh bandage on the cut on his head.

Kaz was sunken into the other chair, bandages on the scrape on his arm, and he was holding an ice pack over his eye. His left eye was closed; not that it mattered since he could see little without his glasses.

Sitting behind the desk in front of them was Principle Revil; a broad shouldered man with a squashed nose and light brown hair that was fading into gray in a rather dashing manner. He also had a moustache that looked out of place on his young visage but no one would say otherwise. Mr. Revil thought it made him look wiser. Now he was leaning his elbows on his mahogany wood desk and tapping his fingertip together.

"So, boys, would you like to tell me what happened? Mrs. Saline said you were fighting. What I want to know is why?"

"I was just trying to talk to Kaz and he started yelling at me." Tom growled.

"You eavesdropped on my conversation with Sarah!" Kaz snapped back, glaring at Tom with his one good eye.

"That doesn't matter!" Tom shouted in reply, wincing slightly as he brushed his swollen lip, "You were getting all "woe is me" about those stupid dreams!"

"Shut up!" Kaz screamed, leaping to his feet and clenching his fists at his sides. The ice pack bulged in his hand and Tom could see the purplish-yellow swelling that was ringing his best friend's right eye, "Why do you care, anyway!? You never listened to me anyway! You didn't—!"

"BOYS!" Principle Revil slammed his hands on the desk and glared at the two fourteen year olds, "That's quite enough of that! Kazdan! Sit down!" Kaz complied, placing the ice pack back over his eye again with a heavy sigh, "Now, Thomas, you did something that was clearly in the wrong." Tom sputtered angrily but the principle held his hand up to silence him, "But Kazdan, that gave you no right to start a fist fight, am I clear?" Kaz mumbled something indistinguishable, "I asked you; am I clear?"

"Yessir." Kaz muttered, looking at the floor.

"Both of you have detention this weekend and that means no leaving campus and sitting in Mr. McGrooter's science classroom until they day ends." Mr. Revil sat back in his chair, "If I catch you fighting again you're going to be suspended from all school activities for the rest of the school year; including the Fourth of July Gala and the Halloween Dance. Understood?" Both boys nodded, "Then you are free to go."

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Science Building, Mr. McGrooter's Classroom, Saturday-

Kaz was miserable.

Miserable and sleepy.

Sitting in detention on a lovely Saturday was one thing but sitting in detention when you'd only gotten about four hours of sleep the previous night was something else completely. Kaz had never gotten into a fist fight before and he decided he didn't want to be in one again; the bruises weren't worth the vented aggression.

There was a scattering of two or three other students spaced around the room so that they couldn't talk to one another unless they talked in a loud whisper that would surely carry through the silence. Tom was on the opposite side of the room from Kaz. Mr. McGrooter; the short, potbellied science teacher; sat at the head of the classroom behind his desk, grading his papers and occasionally glancing up to make sure the kids were all in order.

It was stifling hot in the room. Mr. McGrooter, it seemed, had some sort of religious policy against opening windows or turning on air conditioning even in the summer heat. Kaz's dark green T-shirt and black shorts were sticking to him and he had to peel his bare arms off the desk in order to move them. He put his head in his arms, eyelids feeling heavy, and fingered one of the neon green spikes he wore in his ears. What he wouldn't give for an ice cold slushie right about now.

His head spun with heat and he closed his eyes. Maybe he was dying. Well, okay, maybe dying was pushing it a little but it could be heat stroke. Yeah, heat stroke, that's what it was. And then he'd get out of this boiling classroom and go to the Medical Ward where there was probably air conditioning and water.

Thoughts chased one another around his mind as he sunk into a light slumber…

-???-

_**Everything was blurry and his vision was sort of smeared at the edges. Voices were distant and sometimes crackled like static. But there was feeling that was so clear he thought it was tangible. What it was, though, he couldn't say.**_

_**Whatever the sensation, he felt safe and comfortable, wrapped in the arms of someone who would kill to save his life. And he felt the same way about that person, whoever they were. **_

_**Something long and black, probably hair by the looks of things, smooth skin that seemed redish-brown in his blurry sight, and something—no, two somethings—arching behind the person's back. They moved with them, as though attached. Something rumbled in his chest and he realized it was someone speaking. The voice was deep and gravelly but it was broken by static that came from nowhere but his own mind.**_

"—_**so small. I've never seen—born before and—. What—name—?"**_

_**There was an answer but he couldn't hear it. And of the reply, he only caught a single word,**_

"—_**son."**_

_**Then the world ran like wet paint and splatters of dark crimson blood splashed across his vision.**_

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Science Building, Mr. McGrooter's Classroom, Saturday-

"NO!" Kaz screamed and tumbled out of his seat with a clatter, ending up gasping on the floor and staring wide-eyed at the ceiling. He felt suddenly detached, like the world around him was just as much a dream as that nightmare he'd woken from.

"Mr. Kalinkas!" Mr. McGrooter was suddenly looming over him, blocking his view of the overhead fluorescent lights, and he didn't look very pleased, "This is not a time for you to take a nap! You are in _detention_! Now get up off the floor and sit in your seat!"

Kaz climbed slowly back into his seat and it wasn't until he was slumped in his chair again that he realized he was shaking. His chocolate eyes flickered up and around the room. Some of the other kids were looking at him but when they caught him glancing their way, the turned around again. Kaz's gaze met Tom's and brown locked with blue.

Tom mouthed the words, "Are you okay?"

Kaz scowled in a way that clearly said, "Why the heck do you care?"

Tom's expression fell and he turned away with a "I was just trying to help" shrug.

Kaz glared at the top of his desk but then stopped. It was too hot for him to be angry. And it was too hot to fight with Tom.

Kaz readjusted his glasses (replaced courtesy of the government) and snuck another glance at the black-haired boy who was focusing with all his might on the tips of his fingers. Tom was his best friend, not to mention his roommate. Sure, he could be an egotistical jerk sometimes but he was loyal, and he stuck up for Kaz when he could. If only he at least pretended to care!

"You're excused." Mr. McGrooter snapped without looking up from his papers, "I'll expect all of you back here tomorrow; same time. Now get out of here!"

The students shuffled out the doors, to hot and drowsy to bolt for the exit, and dragged themselves out into the cooler, moving air of the outdoors. Tom stepped up beside Kaz and the two started walking down the sidewalk.

"Kaz—." Tom began.

"No." Kaz put a hand up, stopping him, "I don't wanna hear it. No apologies. We'll just forget the whole thing ever happened, okay?"

"Alright," Tom said with a smile, "But you know," He slapped Kaz on the back, "I'm always here for you, buddy."

Peyton and Sarah met them at the Ring. Sarah looked between them and nodded in a satisfied sort of way. Peyton grinned,

"You two cool now?"

"Totally cool." Tom and Kaz answered at the same time.

* * *

_Translations: Per A Nebulosus Speculum – Through A Foggy Mirror_

_My gosh, what a corny ending. Still, Tom and Kaz had to make up somehow. They are best buddies. I noticed that they seem to bicker an awful lot in the show but this time they took it to an emotional extreme. Cerberus/Kaz as a character doesn't like people talking down to him, telling him he's wrong, or acting like they can't take him seriously when he's being genuinely sincere about a situation. That's why he lost his temper so badly about the way Tom, Sarah, and Peyton were acting about his dreams/nightmares. Probably his UnderWorld pride. Must be genetic._

_Well, I'm off to play some Kingdom Hearts: RE Chain of Memories! Thank you so much for reading, please keep doing so, and don't forget to review! Reviews inspire more chapters and make 4Kids play episodes pertaining to the PLOT! (Yeah, right. I'll keep dreaming)_


	7. Cado Pro Suus

_This whole thing is coming along rather slowly and it's sort of starting to irritate me. Part of me wants to jump ahead and just get to the good stuff but that would leave plot holes and that just can't happen. I do have to establish the relationships between certain characters so just bear with me, I guess._

_Skipping ahead a couple of years here…

* * *

  
_

**Cado Pro Suus

* * *

  
**

-Seven Years After Enrollment, October, Dusklit Park-

Most of the leaves had fallen off the trees by the end of September but the few that still clung were old, brown, and withered. The leaves on the ground, however, danced in the chill autumn wind, spinning in flashes of red, orange, yellow, and dark violet. It was a glourious sight, one of natures most gorgeous dances, but the four seventeen year old companions walking down the sidewalk that wove through Dusklit Park were more interested in their converstation.

"You're telling me that you—Thomas Majors, the class flirt—!"

"Hey!"

"You're telling me that _you_ don't have a date to the Halloween Dance!?" Sarah gave a short burst of laughter that cracked the crisp air.

"And what's so funny about that?" Tom snapped back, ducking his head down to avoid a gust of wind, "You don't have a date either!"

"Yeah, well, neither do Peyton or Kaz!" Sarah turned to look over her shoulder at the two other boys, "Why _don't_ you guys have dates yet?"

Kaz shoed his face into the upturned collar of his sweeping black trench coat and mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like, "none of your buisness." Peyton didn't say anything and merely smiled at Sarah.

"If you're so eager for me to get a girl, fine!" Tom looked around wildly, gaze flickering around at the few other people wandering through the park, and saw Krystella and Klay sitting on a bench, sharing a coffee, "Hey! Krystella!" The dark haired girl looked up with a glare, "Want to go to the Halloween Dance with me!?" Krystella's eyebrows rose slowly and she had a quick, whispered conversation with Klay. Then she nodded, "See! I can get a girl!" Tom faced Sarah again with a triumphant grin that quickly fell away, "What?"

Sarah had stopped walking and was looking at Tom with cold hurt etched clearly into her pretty face. She shook her head at him, eyes sparkling, turned on her heel, and walked away as quickly as she could without running. The wind grabbed at her golden hair as she turned a corner of trees and disappeared from view.

"What's with her?" Krystella had appeared besde Tom, looping her arm through his with a whisper of a smile on her lips.

"Dunno." Tom shrugged, utter confusion flickering in his eyes as he looked off to where Sarah had vanished, "Say, wanna go hang out somewhere?"

"Sure." And they drifted off together. It looked wrong somehow. Klay stood up, coffee in hand, gave Kaz the finger and sneer to go with it, and left as well.

Kaz rolled his eyes and turned to tell Peyton he thought everyone was acting up but the other boy was looking downtrodden. His gaze was fixed on the sidewalk and, after a moment of silence, he shuffled off with his head down and his hands in his pockets. Kaz was left alone in the chilly fall wind. He'd never seen Peyton act like that before.

"Well, thanks a ton guys." The Goth scowled when he realized no one was coming back to hang out with him, "Nice to know I'm loved too." He stomped down the path, too annoyed to pay attention to the dancing leaves. Or to where he was going. He almost ran into someone coming the opposite way.

"Oh, sor—Mercy!" Kaz's words got stuck in his throat and his face felt warm despite the cold air.

"Hey Kaz." She wasn't looking at him but rather at her hands.

"Um...eh..." Kaz tried to remeber what it was exactly he was going to say her but his mind was completely blank.

"I was looking for you." Mercy's voice was solid but her hands were shaking with nerves, "I...I wanted to...to ask you...to ask you if—."

"Mercy, would you go to the dance with me?" Kaz blurted out and his coat suddenly felt tight and hot. He shifted uncomfortably.

Mercy was staring at him as though trying to process exactly what he'd said. Then her face turned pink and she smiled,

"Yeah."

Kaz nearly swooned as he felt a grin split his face. Mercy wove her fingers in Kaz's and they continued down the sidewalk. Kaz felt like he was floating rather walking.

"So, what're you going as?" Now that the big question was out of the way, Mercy seemed to have settled back into her usual demenor.

"I...um...I hadn't really...thought about it."

"I can have a friend of mine make a costume for you."

"Tiffany?"

"Tiffany couldn't sew to save her life, no offense to her. No, the one I'm talking about is Jo-Jo."

"And she sews?"

"He."

"What?"

"Jo-Jo's a boy. He's a couple of years older than me and he's a Public but," Mercy shrugged, "He's cool. In fact," She smiled as Kaz, "He's a little like you."

"How so?" Kaz just managed to squeeze the words out, swept away as he was by Mercy's smile.

"Well, he likes to draw a lot but that's mainly fashion stuff. And he's kind of funny. Oh," Mercy suddenly turned red, "But he's also...um...gay."

"What!?" Kaz balked. The happy, floating feeling suddenly departed and he was rudely slammed back to Earth, "Y-you think I'm…_gay_!?"

"No!" Mercy cried, looking upset. She yanked her hand from his and wrung it together with her other hand in a disconcerted fashion, "Jo-Jo…I only meant that as s difference!" She looked at the ground, even redder than before, "I'm sorry, Kaz."

"No, I…" Kaz thought his face probably matched Mercy's by now, "It's not your fault. I misunderstood you. Everything cool?"

In answer, Mercy smiled, reached up, and kissed him on the cheek.

-October, Rowan Drive, The Goswillow Home-

Kaz was still in a pleasant daze when Mercy knocked on the door of a tan colored, two storied house in the suburbs just along the park. The door opened and a woman with curly brown hair that had fashionable streaks of gray in it smiled at them.

"Mercy!" Her voice was low but sweet, "How are you? And who's your handsome friend?" Kaz was too stupefied to react.

"Mrs. Goswillow, this is Kaz." Mercy's grip tightened on his hand and Kaz grinned goofily, head in the clouds, "He needs a costume for the Halloween Dance and I was wondering if Jo-Jo would help."

"Oh, I'm sure he'll love to help you." The woman, probably Jo-Jo's mother, smiled again and let them inside, "Joseph so does love his sewing."

Mercy led Kaz through a spacious living room and up a flight of carpeted stairs. She stopped outside a white door with a neat little sign painted in black lettering that read "Joseph's Room." She rapped her knuckles on the door and it opened, revealing a tall, skinny boy with curly, dark brown hair and small hazel eyes.

"Heeeyyyyy! It's Mercy!" Jo-Jo bent down and squeezed the girl into a hug, "Long time, no see, Girlie!" Then he noticed Kaz staring at him with glazed brown eyes and whispered, "This one yours, Mercy?"

"Um…I…well, I…guess so." Mercy flushed pink.

"Hey there, laddie, I'm Jo-Jo!" The older boy held out a hand and Kaz reacted on good manners and instinct alone. Jo-Jo grabbed him into a hug that lifted even the lanky Kaz off his feet. And also snapped him out of his daze.

"Whoa! Hey! What!?" Jo-Jo set Kaz back on the floor with a burst of laughter like the ringing of tiny bronze bells, "Oh, uh, yeah…hi, I'm Kaz." He rubbed the back of his neck to hide his embarrassment.

"Come in, come in!" Jo-Jo ushered them into his room, "And sit anywhere you like!" Kaz looked around. The room's walls were painted a beautiful blue, like the sky on a clear day, the ceiling was pure white, and the cream carpet was thin underfoot. A bed piled with rumpled sheets was in a corner, a computer sat on a small desk against the same wall, and a large closet; probably walk in by the looks of it; was partially open. The rest of the room was taken up by piles of fabric, sketches of clothing designs, a huge desk where a box of pins, scissors, and some fabric lay, and a rather new looking sewing machine. Just to be safe, Kaz and Mercy sat on the bed while Jo-Jo plopped himself into his computer chair.

"So Kazzy-boy, Mercy tells me you're an artist, eh?" Jo-Jo grinned, "I'd like to see your stuff sometime, she tells me it's really goooooood!" Kaz stared at the carpet, embarrassed again, "Alright, alright, I'll quit picken'! What brings you here to the Privates, anyway?"

"Kaz needs a costume for the Halloween Dance that's coming up," Mercy said without hesitation, "I was hoping you'd make one for him like you did for me."

Jo-Jo made a dramatic gesture, throwing his hand across his forehead in a Shakespeare-ian sort of way, "Mercy, darling," He drawled with a fact accent, "You ask too much of me!" Kaz sniggered. Jo-Jo arched an eyebrow at him, "Oooooohhh, think it's funny do you? On your feet!"

The next hour or so was spent with Jo-Jo taking measurements and discussing ideas with Mercy and Kaz feeling completely out of place in his dark clothing in this bright room. They stayed for lunch and had some of Mrs. Goswillow's wonderful meatloaf and then Jo-Jo locked Kaz out of his room so he could finalize everything with Mercy.

"It's going to be a surprise!" The older boy assured him with a pat on the shoulder, "And you'll love it! Trust me!" And he winked and shut the door.

Kaz slouched down against the wall in the hallway at the top of the stairs. Well, now would be the perfect opportunity to sort out everything that had happened. It had happened so fast…

Tom had asked Krystella to the Halloween Dance (why anyone would ask someone like her anywhere was a mystery to him) and Sarah had…Sarah had what. Kaz frowned, trying to scrounge up a memory of the earlier events. Sarah had looked _upset_ about the whole thing. But why would Sarah care who Tom went out with? She'd said herself that Tom was nothing but an egotistical, stuck-up flirt.

And then there was the way Peyton had been acting.

Peyton was the most optimistic and up-beat person Kaz knew. Sure, Peyton could get really nasty if you got on his bad side but he was friendly and charismatic and got along with pretty much everyone. But he'd actually looked _depressed_. What had caused that?

Kaz couldn't figure it so he moved on to something else: how he felt about Mercy.

There was no denying it, he liked her. But how much he couldn't say. He felt like he was wandering in a beautiful field of flowers where if you brushed up against the wrong flower, it would grab you and suck the marrow from your bones.

Kaz shuddered, _What a pleasant thought…_ Then he frowned, drawing his knees up to his chin and wrapping his arms around his ankles, _And what about those dreams? They stopped for a while and now they're back, clearer than ever. _He put a hand to his forehead, closing his eyes, and dug into the far reaches of his mind to retrieve his most recent night visions. But even those were hazy.

He recalled peering into a room in the darkness of night with the feeling he should be in bed and staring at the back of some monstrous red beast with dark spikes running down its back and thick, spiked tail. But there had been something about the way the monster had been leaning over the table, shoulders hunched, that had made him feel sad.

Kaz opened his eyes and stared at his palm as thought it would have the answer he was looking for. To no avail. That had been his clearest dream; the sharpest images and the most prominent feelings. Kaz had felt as though he was looking at another world through another person's eyes.

And it scared him.

"Kaz?" The boy jumped and looked up. Mercy was standing over him with a bundle in her arms, "Are you okay?"

"Huh? Um, yeah, sorry. Why?" He stood up and stretched his hands over his head until he heard his spine give a satisfying "pop."

"You had a really weird look on your face."

"Oh…um…I was…thinking about stuff and I—."

"That's your costume, Kazzy-boy!" Jo-Jo came bounding out of the room and slung an arm around Kaz's shoulders, indicating the bundle Mercy held, "Perfect thing you! I swear it!" He smiled and Kaz forced one in return, "I'll see you two loverbirds around, eh? Right? You'll come visit me, huh?"

After they had assured Jo-Jo that they would visit him again after the Halloween Dance, Mercy and Kaz left Rowan Drive and headed back for Dusklit Park. It was getting dark and they had to make it back to campus before time was up or face detention at the hands of Mrs. Saline.

Kaz flashed his keycard against the computer at the gate and the two stepped through, heading for the dorms. They stopped at the iron fence separating the two buildings and looked at one another. Kaz had his costume under one arm. With his free hand he slowly reached up and brushed some of Mercy's beautiful mahogany hair from her face. She blushed and smiled.

"Do you wanna hang out again tomorrow?" She asked in a soft voice.

"Sure, uh, yeah." Kaz suddenly remembered something, "Oh, but Tom, Sarah, Peyton, and I were all going to the arcade because, well, we always go to the arcade on Sunday. " the he remembered something else, "Actually, it just might be you and me…"

"Why?" Kaz didn't answer, "Kaz, you can tell me what's wrong."

Kaz chewed on his lip. He'd been keeping things to himself lately; he hadn't talked to Tom or anyone else about the dreams in almost three years. He didn't want to argue with his best friends.

"Kaz," Mercy put a hand on his arm and he melted under her touch, "You can talk to me. I'm right here, for you."

It was corny, but coming from her it didn't seem to matter. Kaz spilled out the story of what had happened in the park earlier that day, unable to explain the cold sensation that turned his heart, and even told her about his dreams. Mercy was silent for a few moments and Kaz was sure she was going to laugh at him or roll her eyes and call him crazy but she just said,

"I don't know how to explain your dreams, Kaz, sorry. But," She hid a smile that Kaz frowned at because he didn't understand what was so funny, "No, I'm sorry, I can't say!"

"Hey, what!?"

"This is something between you guys," Mercy said firmly, still smiling at him, "You four need to figure it out for yourself. It's what siblings do" And she pecked him on the cheek and skipped off.

"We're not exactly…siblings." Kaz murmured to himself as he fumbled with key to his room. The spot on his cheek felt hot but his eyelids were heavy and he wandered into the room just as darkness fell. After setting his costume safely in the dresser in his room, he scanned around for Tom. But Tom wasn't in the kitchen or the living room so Kaz knocked on his best friend's door. There was a muffled thump, a high-pitched yelp, and the door opened just a crack so that Kaz could see Tom's blazing blue eyes and messy black hair. It looked messier than usual.

"Hey…Kaz…" Tom's words were slightly slurred, probably because he'd been asleep.

"Um, Tom, I just wanted to make sure you were okay about—."

"I'm fine…" Tom closed his eyes and made an odd grunt like he was stretching. A small crack, "Sorry, my leg fell asleep." He blinked blearily and grinned, "You goin' to bed?"

"Nah, I'll watch some TV. See you in the morning."

"Yeah…" The door closed sharply and Kaz rolled his eyes, walking over to sit down on the couch with a heavy thud. He flicked through several channels before settling on one he liked.

* * *

_Translations: Cado Pro Suus- Fallen For Her_

_And that's where we're going to end it for now. It's not the best ending in the world but if I kept going then this chapter would be too long. _

_Soooooooo, how many of you are all "FINALLY!!" about the whole Kaz__**x**__Mercy thing? (gigglesnort) They're just so cute together! _

_Dude, I just thought of something! If Tom and the gang learned to walk through those time tunnels (the ones from "Out of Time") correctly, they might be able to use that to see what the M'Arrilians are planning and stop them! ……Yeah, like they'd ever think of that on their own…_

_Wow, talk about ranting. _

_Well anyway, thank you all so much for reading and please keep doing so! I hope you're enjoying this! And please keep up all those wonderful reviews! Sorry, I can't answer all your questions, otherwise I'd ruin the story! But those reviews are awesome! Please keep it up! Reviews bring more chapters and help me think of something witty to type here! XD_


	8. Eruditio Ferreus Via

_A disclaimer on my part. Crap happens. People make stupid choices and end up hurting people. Tom's not the brightest crayon in the box. He might be loyal but he's got his priorities a little mixed around. This. Is. Real. Life. In real life, people goof up, they hurt their friends, and hurt themselves in an effort to fix things. _

_But I hope you are all keeping the prologue in mind while you're reading this. It's…important…

* * *

_

**Eruditio Ferreus Via

* * *

**

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room, 1 a.m.-

The door to Tom's bedroom creaked open slowly and two figures slipped out, trying to make as little noise as possible. The television was still on but was now playing pre-paid commercials, the kind that promised you two of whatever product they were selling if you called within the next fifteen minutes.

Both figures snuck past the couch and paused at the front door. There was a hurried, whispered conversation and then the door opened and closed again.

Tom moved slowly back over to the couch and smiled. Kaz was lying on his side, head on one end and stocking feet on the other. His glasses were askew and his arm was dangling over the edge and it was obvious from his slow, steady breathing that he was asleep.

Tom shook his head, walked into Kaz's room, and walked back out with the boy's favorite blanket; a black one dotted with red skulls; that he threw over his best friend's shoulders. Then he reached down and slowly tugged off Kaz's glasses, folded them up, and set them on the lamp stand next to the couch. The only light in the room died as Tom turned off the television.

He stepped back and looked at his best friend, sleeping peacefully, and wondered, briefly, if what he'd done would ruin their friendship forever.

His brow furrowed and he stalked into his room, careful to shut the door quietly behind him.

There was a click as the lock slid into place.

-8:27 am, Tom and Kaz's Room-

Kaz yawned as he felt himself come into wakefulness. He stretched, wondering why he was so stiff this morning, and felt the smooth fabric of the couch pillow against his cheek. Oh, yeah, that's right, he'd stayed up watching television and must have fallen asleep. The boy cracked his eyes open, ruffling his red-orange hair, and found the room to be nothing but smears of colors and shapes. Someone had taken off his glasses.

With a snort of frustration, he stuck his hand out from underneath the warm blanket someone had taken the courtesy of draping over him and felt around for his glasses. His questing fingers soon found the cold metal frames perched on the lamp stand just over the arm rest of the couch. He snatched them off the table and shoved onto his face, kicking off the blanket as he swung himself into a sitting position.

Oh, for the love of, he was still wearing his clothes from yesterday!

"Gross." He commented to himself. Kaz rose to his feet, tugging off his socks as he walked across the sitting room and into his own bedroom. Once there, he stripped down to his boxers, tossing his dirty clothes in the hamper next to his door, and pulled out a fresh outfit. Then he wrapped himself in a black bathrobe, tucked his clothes and toiletries into a bag, scribbled a note for Tom in case he woke up, pinned it to the TV, slipped his feet into his sandals, and headed out the door for the showers.

Because it was only 8:30 on a Sunday morning and most of the students had spent the night partying, the shower was empty when Kaz arrived. He cracked his neck, walked into a stall and shut the door behind him, and turned on the water.

Twenty minutes later he was dressed in baggy black jeans, from one belt loop there hung a strand of silver skulls, a tight black tank top, an old pair of black and dark violet arm bands, and dark blue vest decorated with black flames. As he made his way back to the room, Aras hailed him in the hallway.

"Hey, man, I thought Goths didn't do the whole "rise and shine" thing?"

"I didn't stay out partying like the rest of you." Kaz replied, "I didn't…feel like it."

"Oooohhhh, dude, I know that look, man." Aras slapped his shoulder, "Kaz-man's got himself a _girlfriend_!"

"Shove it." Kaz grumbled but smiled anyways. Aras was just being himself.

"Hey, you doin' something later?" The older boy asked.

"Yeah, I'm going to the arcade in town with Mercy. And…maybe Tom, Sarah, and Peyton. You wanna come?"

"Nah, I'll pass." Aras waved the invitation away with a grin, "Me and arcades don't go." He laughed, passing a hand down his front as he walked away backwards, "They always think I'm gonna rob 'em!"

Kaz shared his laugh and headed back towards his own room. Tom was still in his bedroom when he got back, by the looks of things. Kaz tossed his things into his room, feeling too lazy to bother spiking his hair, and then pounded a fist on his best friend's door.

"Tom! Come on, Tom, get up! You've got," Kaz glanced at the clock on the DVD player, "An hour to get up and get ready! We're meeting Sarah and Peyton and Mercy outside the grounds at ten so you'd better be ready!"

No answer.

"Tom! Get up!" He tried the handle and found it locked, "Thomas Majors! Get up! Right now! Or I'll break this door down!"

Still no answer.

"Fine! Stay in there all day!" Kaz threw up his hands in exasperation and stomped into his room, snatching up his mobile and hitting Peyton's number on speed dial. The other boy answered on the third ring.

"_Dude, what time do you call this?"_

"Cut it out, Peyton. Tom's asleep in bed with his door locked and he won't come out. We might be a little late."

"_Whatever, man, but if Sarah punches me because of it, I get to hit Tom."_

"Sure, sure." Kaz said, "Look," He paused, "Um, about yesterday…are you…are you okay? You looked pretty bad."

"_Don't matter."_ Peyton sounded sharp and empty, _"Forget about it. We're going to have some fun today."_

"Oh, okay. Well, I'll keep trying to get Tom up. See you later."

"_Yep! Oh, and Kazzer?"_

"Yeah?"

"_Nice job with Mercy, my bro!"_

Kaz flushed crimson and slammed his phone shut, throwing back onto his bed with a scowl. Obviously the whole campus would know he and Mercy were going out by now. If one person had seen them walk in together holding hands, then it was like the entire school saw them doing it.

To get over his embarrassment, Kaz slammed a fist on Tom's door again and listened. This time, he was rewarded with a soft moan and a shuffle of bed sheets. Well, it was about time. Kaz rapped on the door one finale time and then went into the kitchen to start breakfast.

Moments later, just as he was stirring some strawberry chunks into the pancake mix, he heard Tom's door open and his roommate shuffled into the kitchen to sit down at the table. He was only wearing a pair of rumpled boxers.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty." Kaz teased.

"Mmmhph…" Tom replied, rubbing his eyes and yawning loudly. Then he stretched and ruffled his already messy black hair.

Kaz sighed and then paused, fingers still holding the spoon in the mixing bowl. He sniffed a couple of times, "What's that smell?"

"What?" Tom asked groggily.

"It smells like…cigarettes and perfume." He looked over his shoulder at Tom, raising an eyebrow, "Is…is that _you_?"

Tom sniffed his upper arm and blinked, "Might be. Why?"

"It _stinks_!" Kaz turned away again. Then he paused and looked back over his shoulder, "Why do _you_ smell like cigarettes and perfume?"

Tom shrugged and Kaz narrowed his eyes. He dropped the spoon and walked out of the kitchen. Tom's voice followed him, "Kaz, where're you going?"

Kaz didn't answer, he just walked straight up to Tom's bedroom and kicked the door open.

"Kaz! Stay out of my room!" Tom was following him from the kitchen.

Kaz ignored his friend and moved over the threshold. The whole room reeked of smoke and girl's perfume. Kaz sneezed and crouched down to look under the bed. Tom was in the doorway now,

"Kaz! Leave it alone!"

Kaz withdrew, clutching an empty box of cigarettes.

Tom's angry retort died in his throat when he saw the look on his best friend's face.

_Disappointment._

_Betrayal._

_Hurt._

"I thought you were above this, Tom." Kaz clenched a fist over the cigarette pack, "Seriously, you smoked?" He shook his head, "What else did you do?"

"Look, I was angry!" Tom argued back, distraught by the look Kaz was giving him, "Krystella said she could…could "show me a good time" so I brought her back to the room and—."

"You brought her back here!?" Tom winced as Kaz shouted the words, "What were you planning to do with her!?"

"N-not that!" Tom waved his hands through air, "Never! But I…she…I was so mad at Sarah for picking on me and so I wanted to get back at her…"

"So you _smoked_?" Kaz wasn't shouting anymore but the ice in his voice made Tom feel lower than garbage, "You thought _that_ was the answer? You never _think_ do you? That thing between your ears doesn't function, does it?"

"Kaz, I—."

"Nu-uh!" Kaz shoved past his roommate, furious and hurt, "There's no "Kaz, I'm sorry" this time! There's no "totally cool" this time! You crossed the line, Tom!" He threw the empty cigarette pack in the trash with such force, it rattled the whole can.

"But it was just one and I—."

"It doesn't matter!" Kaz screamed, cutting him off, "It was sleeping in or the arcade! Our friendship or drugs! Some _girl_ or the gang! And you _lied_ to our faces!"

"How'd I—!?"

"Because we trusted you to make the right decisions!" A single tear streaked down Kaz's cheek and it blazed there like a beacon, making Tom feel all the more guilty, "Darn it, Tom!" Kaz relented suddenly, stepping back with a shaky breath, "Some friend you are…" And turned, opened the door, and dashed out, slamming it behind him.

Tom cringed at the noise.

The room suddenly seemed fifty times bigger…

…and fifty times emptier.

He sank onto the couch, staring at the floor.

He'd done something horribly wrong and now he was losing his best friend because of it. Then again, when had he ever been there for Kaz in the first place? Now that he really thought about, wallowing in his guilt, he usually left Kaz to his own devices. Sure, he'd stick up for him and hang out with him but…

Tom rubbed the heels of his hands into his eyes until he saw spots.

He'd messed up so many times, that much was true.

So there was only one thing left to try.

_Apologize._

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, 9: 50, The Front Gate-

Kaz didn't even realize he was crying until he blinked and his vision cleared as a wave of tears ran down his face. He scrubbed his hands over his face to get rid of them but his eyes wouldn't quit the water works. Why was he _crying so much_!?

Tom was a jerk! Tom had lied! Tom had stepped all over their friendship! Tom could go burn in the burning depths of the Underworld for all Kaz cared! He'd had enough!

And yet, he was hurt so deeply it physically ached.

_That feeling…_ He thought, walking unconsciously towards the Front Gate with his head down so that his red and black hair curtained his face and kept any other early risers from seeing his constant stream of tears, _It's that horribly empty and lonely feeling…the same one I felt when I left home…_

He froze.

_Left…home?_

Where had that come from?

When he'd left his adopted mother's home?

No, the feeling didn't click with that thought.

Home…

Something tugged at the back of his mind, begging him to remember. Warmth, darkness, high stone walls, the feeling of safety and security…

Kaz closed his eyes and tilted his head back, standing in the middle of sidewalk. Tears still stained his cheeks. His eyes burned. He grabbed at the thought in his head.

Something swam into focus in his mind's eye and he eagerly urged it into existence.

A blur of red…and blue…and a hulking form…the presence of unsurpassable power…and at the same time…comfort…love…and a face…it was sharpening…a pair of ice blue eyes…demanding respect and commanding author—

"Kaz!"

The boy snapped out of his daze so quickly his head spun. He looked around and saw Mercy jogging towards him. He waited until she was level with him before responding, "Morning, Mercy."

"I've never seen you with your hair down before! It looks cute!" She giggled and then her smile dropped, "What's wrong?"

Kaz cleared his throat a couple of times and took her hand, "Somewhere else." He whispered, "Not here." He led her into The Ring and they sat down together on the flat rock in the center of the willows. Kaz stared at the grass between his boots and explained what had happened between him and Tom.

When he finished, Mercy leaned against him and pulled him into a hug. The move was so unexpected that Kaz was rendered speechless in a moment of pure, bright red, embarrassment. Then she let him go and her hazel eyes locked with his dark chocolate ones.

"Kaz, listen to me, okay." He nodded, "_You_ need to sort this out. You and To—."

"Kaz?" The two looked around and saw Tom sticking his head through the curtain of leaves, "Kaz, I really need to talk to—."

Kaz turned his back on his with a huff and a scowl, clearing saying he didn't want to talk to Tom.

"Mercy," He said coldly, "Will you tell Tom I don't want to talk to him?"

Mercy raised an eyebrow at him but stood and relayed the message. Tom's eye narrowed in anger and he spat something in reply. Mercy sighed and stepped back to Kaz's side,

"He says he was going to say he was sorry but if you're going to act like that then you can move out of the dorm."

Kaz felt hot fury boil up inside him, "Yeah!? Well you tell him that I don't want his stupid apology!"

Mercy rolled her eyes but did as Kaz requested. He kept his back to Tom but he could hear his hissing whisper of anger and then Mercy came back, "He's calling you a bunch of names I'm not going to repeat." She muttered sullenly.

"Fine! You can tell him—!" Kaz began.

"NO!" Mercy shouted, stomping her foot, "I'm _not_ going to be your messenger! If _you've_ got something to say to Tom, _you_ say it!" And she left, kicking the draping leaves of the willows out of her way with a snort of anger.

Kaz stared after her, dumbfounded and hurt. He'd just lost two friends in one day. How could this possibly get any worse?

* * *

_Translations: Eruditio Ferreus Via – Learning the Hard Way_

_Ever heard of Murphy's Law, Kazzy? "What can go wrong, will go wrong." Geez, everything's just falling apart around him, isn't it? I feel bad for him. Still, part of it is his fault. _

_Oh, hey, I forgot to ask in the last chapter if anyone caught why Sarah and Peyton got so upset. Virtual cookies for whoever can guess. (grins)_

_Anyway, I've been brought up short on watching Chaotic episodes because the school computers don't want to stream the videos anymore and I want to kill them because they won't LET ME WATCH MY SHOW! (runs around, screaming in anger, and smashing things)_

_Kaz: Straight jacket, anyone?_

_Shut up, you. Like you're any better! Anyway, thank you all so much for reading! Please keep doing so because the good stuff's on the horizon! Yesh, yesh! And please keep reviewing! I look forward to them every time I check my mail! Hoo-rah! And reviews also make more chapters and free the ones locked in the UnderWorld pits!_

_Kaz: Why are your chapters in the UW pits?_


	9. Vita Dictata

"_I'll pretend not to notice, When you walk in the room. And I'll turn away, If you look in my direction. So ring the bells, 'Cause you broke the rules. The frost covered chimes, That ring with your touch. _

_I'll avoid your eye, If we meet in a restaurant. And ignore your cold touch, If you brush up beside me. So ring the bells, 'Cause you broke the rules. The frost covered chimes, That ring with your touch._

_Turn your back. Get out of here. I can't stand what you did; You're such a liar. It was friendship or drugs, Sleeping in or the arcade, Some girl or the gang. And you _lied_. _

_So ring the bells, 'Cause you broke the rules. The frost covered chimes, That break from your touch." _

_A poem I wrote in my English class journal when I planned this and the previous chapter out. You'll probably recognize the "bridge" part because that's where I got Kaz's rant at Tom. _

_Thanks for reading!

* * *

_

**Vita Dictata

* * *

**

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, The Ring-

That horribly empty feeling came creeping up on him again, making him feel cold and alone. Kaz shivered, despite the warm sunlight filtering through the trees around him. It may have been October but the mornings were quite warm.

But that didn't matter.

What mattered was all the crap he was going through.

"I'm not sorry for that." Came Tom's voice from behind him.

"Shut up, I don't want to talk to you." Kaz hissed, his face in his hands.

"It's your own fault."

"I said shut up."

"Maybe if you thought about someone else once in a while—."

Kaz jumped to his feet and rounded on Tom, fury radiating from him like a heat lamp. His eyes blazed behind his glasses, brightening from dark chocolate to glowing topaz in a second. His fists quivered at his aides, arms tight with taunt muscle, and his breathing was heavy, angry, shaking with tears. Rage had turned Kaz around from the quiet, charismatic boy, to the ferocious, lanky lad who'd picked a fist fight with his best friend almost three years ago.

"You think I'm worried about my reputation!?" He snarled, quite literally, showing his teeth in an almost animalistic way, "You think I _care_ what other people think about me!? I just hurt Mercy because _you_ made a stupid choice and you want me to apologize to you!?"

Tom glared back coldly, equally taunt and ready to throw a punch, "Well, yeah. Seeing as you blew mine off!"

Kaz gave a scream of frustration that rang clearly in the air. Tears started boiling over once again but they were strange tears. Or so something in the back of Tom's infuriated brain whispered. They seemed to glow, just like Kaz's eyes, and, unless it was a trick of the light, they seemed to smolder and smoke as they rolled down his cheeks. But Kaz didn't seem to notice and Tom, seeing red as he was, certainly didn't.

Kaz was shaking so badly, the silver skulls on his belt loop jingled slightly, "This isn't—I don't—!" He screamed again, unable to find the words he needed to say. Then he began to sway on his feet, sobbing and stuttering.

Tom realized what was about to happen and leapt forward to catch Kaz as the other boy fainted on his feet. Tom stumbled at the unexpected weight as Kaz slumped into him, and then fell on his butt with a thud in the grass.

There was a few moments of silence and then the branches of the willow trees rustled and Mercy peered back inside. The look on her face was half-way between hurt and worry. And then she saw Kaz sprawled unconscious across Tom's lap and immediately became completely worried.

"Kazdan!" She ran to his side and dropped on the grass beside him, "Tom, what happened!? Did you hit him!?"

"No!" Tom snapped indignantly, "He fainted. He does that when he gets too worked up about something. Come on, help me get him into the Nurse's Office."

-???-

_**The world spun and tilted and turned underneath him and around him. Nausea clenched his stomach, his head was dizzy with the feeling of movement, and he fought the urge to be sick.**_

_**A splash. He was plunged beneath icey water so cold he lost the ability to move. Not that it mattered; in this place he seemed to only be a corporeal form incapable of controlling his movements. Perhaps this was another dream? No, it couldn't be. It didn't have the same feeling…**_

_**Something stirred in the water and he looked around. **_

_**A neon glowing body, dark and dangerous intelligence, and a wave of fear so strong it knocked him silly were all he could grasp before something yanked him away, out of the water, and into…**_

…_**into where? There was nothing but darkness.**_

"_**This is all there will be if everything is not made as it should be." Said a voice that came from him, and yet echoed around him and spoke in his mind all at the same time.**_

_**A tremor of apprehension and fear as he realized something that seemed impossible to realize.**_

**He was touching someone else's consciousness.**

_**He yelled and tried to run away from the other consciousness. But he could not move.**_

_**An overwhelming sense of power and calm swept over him. Power so strong, a single thought from it could obliterate entire worlds. **_

_**Oh, let him go, let him go. He wanted to get away. Something inside him told him that this thing—whatever or whoever it was—would steal his freedom. What was it? What power it held. Dangerous power. Let him go, let him go…!**_

_**Thoughts began to jumble inside his head from everywhere; millions of voices clashing around in his skull. He grabbed his head in his hands, crying out in pain in the infinite darkness that surrounded him.**_

_**The voices…! Too many voices! Make them stop, make them stop!**_

_**That consciousness sent another wave of power and calm towards him again but he screamed in fear and pain and loathing and wrenched himself away and out of the dream-that-was-not-a-dream and back into reality.**_

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, the Nurse's Office-

"Ah…" Kaz was whimpering in his unconscious state, frowning and jerking this way and that. The blanket beneath him was wrinkled and twisted with his movement but Mercy was too worried—and slightly frightened—to stop him.

"Nhg…ah…" Mercy watched him roll onto his stomach and clench his fists into the bed sheets, burying his face in the pillow despite the glasses still adorning his face. He mumbled something she couldn't hear and then flopped onto his side, gasping. A trickle of sweat ran down from his forehead to his chin. His hands hung over the side of the bed, fingertips twitching. Mercy was glad she'd drawn the curtain around the little bed.

"_Procul_…" Kaz murmured. His voice sounded odd; strained like someone was pressing a heavy weight onto his chest, "_Procul termanis…_" She didn't understand what he was saying, "Nhhgg…" Kaz tossed himself onto his back, glasses askew. Mercy leaned forward to take them off before the boy accidentally broke them when Kaz said something again. Mercy leaned close.

"What?"

"_Procul termanis…of Orbis Terrarum…_" Kaz mumbled in that strained voice and then drew in a rattling, shaky breath, "_Respiro_…_Procul termanis of_…_of Orbis_…_Terrarum_…_respiro_…_respiro_…"

"Kaz?" Mercy whispered, "Kaz, are you pulling my leg or something?" She put a hand to his forehead and was surprised to find it hot. He was burning up. She stood up to go call the nurse when Kaz's eyes fluttered open with a contented sigh. He stared in a glazed sort of way at the ceiling. Then he blinked and focused.

"What?" He sat up then, adjusting his glasses, "Mercy? What happened?" His dark chocolate eyes flickered around the room, "Oh…I fainted, didn't I?" Mercy nodded slowly, still wary of the way he'd been acting earlier, "I used to do that a lot when we were little…"

"Tom got really upset." Mercy sat back down on the chair beside the bed as Kaz went about trying to smooth the wrinkles in his shirt, "He left to go tell Sarah and Peyton not to bother with going to the arcade."

"What!?" Kaz jumped up, boots thudding on the tile floor as he pushed himself off the bed, "No way! We've been planning the arcade for weeks! Come on!"

"Where're we going?"

"To stop him!" He was making this sound more dramatic than it really was.

Mercy jogged after him, pondering whether or not to tell him he'd been muttering things in a strange language in his sleep. Eventually, as they burst into the cool and sunny October air, she decided against it. Kaz had enough on his plate already.

Kaz saw Tom talking to Sarah and Peyton next to the front gate and put on an extra burst of speed. He skidded to a halt in front of his friends, crossed his arms over his chest, and said, "No freaking way!"

"No freaking way what?" Sarah asked.

"We're going to the arcade and that's that!"

"Dude, the arcade's closed." Peyton shrugged, "Some sort of renovation or something."

"We're going to Halloween USA instead." Tom wasn't looking at Kaz, keeping his front towards Sarah and Peyton, "You don't have to come."

Kaz's expression fell into one of incredible hurt. He felt as though someone had stabbed him a dozen times. A lump swelled in his throat. Mercy put her hand in his, comforting. Kaz took a deep breath and let it out slowly,

"I want to come."

"I don't want you to." Tom grumbled.

"Yes, you do."

"No, I don't."

"Shut up. You're an idiot. Yes, you do." Kaz said. His face was blank but there was a slightly mischievous glint in his eye.

"_You're_ an idiot. No, I don't."

"Yes, you do."

"No, I don't."

"Yes, you do."

"No, I don't."

"Yes, you do."

"No, I don't."

"No, you don't."

"Yes, I do."

"No, you don't."

"Yes, I do."

"No you don't."

"Shut up, Kaz!" Tom spun around, "Yes, I do!"

Kaz burst out laughing, "Oh my gosh, I can't believe you fell for that!" He doubled over, tears springing into his eyes he was laughing to hard, "I can't…ahahahahahahahaha! I can't believe you! Ahaaaaaahahahahahahahaaahaha!" He started gasping for air and laughing at the same time.

"Uhhhh...did I miss something?" Peyton asked, looking to Mercy for an answer. Mercy just smiled and turned to Sarah,

"Did you do what I said?"

Sarah cast an inquisitive glance at Mercy and then looked around at the boys. Kaz had stopped laughing to see what was going on and Tom and Peyton were looking at Sarah as well. Sarah shrugged and nodded.

"Aaaannndd?"

"Yep." Sarah and Mercy shared a secret smile.

"Hey! What's going on!?" Tom demanded. He and Kaz seemed to have completely forgotten they were supposed to be fighting with each other.

"Girl stuff." Sarah and Mercy snapped at him at the same time. Tom backed off and put his hands up defensively while Kaz sniggered at the remark.

"Come on, dudes, are we going to Halloween USA or aren't we?" Peyton interjected, tapping his foot impatiently on the ground, "It's already a quarter past ten and I need a costume for the dance!"

Everyone stared at him.

"Who are _you_ going with?" Kaz asked and Peyton actually turned pink,

"It's…uh…it's, um, a secret!"

Tom arched an eyebrow but didn't say anything. Sarah rolled her eyes and pulled out her keycard, flashing it through the computer.

"Come on, guys. Shut your mouths, and move your rears."

-The Bravura Boulevard, Halloween USA-

Since Mercy and Kaz already had costumes, courtesy of Jo-Jo, they followed behind Tom, Sarah, and Peyton commenting here, teasing there, and making an all around nuisance of themselves. The other three didn't mind, though, they simply enjoyed the company, laughing and talking.

Kaz didn't mention what Tom had done and Tom was silently grateful for it. He vowed, someday, he'd make it up to Kaz. No doubt the other boy was still hurt by what Tom had done, but for the moment he was holding that back. In the meantime, Tom expected he'd have to make his own dinner when they got back to the school.

"How about _this_!?" Peyton pulled a wizard's costume off the rack and showed it to his friends.

"I was thinking…this." Kaz indicated a strait jacket costume and the others hid their smiles as Peyton glowered at him.

"Oh Kaz," Mercy said innocently, "So that's where you put your jacket when you escaped the asylum!"

They all laughed at that one. Even Kaz, as he blushed crimson, sniggered a little bit.

"Hey, Peyton!" Sarah called from another aisle and the group followed her voice, "Peyton! I got the _perfect_ thing for you!"

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room-

Tom's prediction that he'd have to make his own supper was true. As soon as they were back in their room, Kaz made a beeline for his bedroom and slammed the door shut. Tom didn't have to hear the lock click to know his best friend didn't want company. Nor did he need to hear the blaring music coming from underneath the door.

"_It's true, we're all a little innnnsaaaaane. But it's so clear, now that I'm unnnnchaaaaiiiined."_ Of course it was Evanescence. He only cranked Evanescence when he was upset about something and was brooding in his room, _"Fear is only in our minds, taking over all the time. Fear is only in our minds but it's taking over all the tiiiimmmmmeee."_

Tom threw together a sandwich in the kitchen and brought it into his bedroom, leaving the door open a crack behind him. He wrinkled his nose as he flopped onto the bed; it still smelled like cigarettes in here.

"_You poooorr, sweeeet innocent thing. Dry your eyes and testifffyyyyyyy. You know you live to break me—don't deny. Sweet sacrifice."_

Well, since Kaz was pouting and he was too tired to do anything else, Tom stared at his wall and thought. He did that sometimes. Not often and not when he thought anyone would walk in on him, but he still did. It organized his thoughts. And organization was something that Tom Majors found hard to come by. Even Kaz's room was more organized than his was.

"_One daaaay, I'm gonna forget yoouuurrrr naaammmeee. And one sweet day, you're gonna drown in my looost paaaiiiiiiin."_

So, there was the stupid decision with Krystella (who he was _totally_ not going to the dance with anymore), and then his fight with Kaz that was not quite over yet, and then that weird sensation he'd noticed when Kaz had started shouting at him in The Ring.

Like the very air was charged with electricity and was going to catch fire at any moment. Pure, raw energy that had emitted from his friend like the light from the sun that had been shining down on them, rearing overhead as a wave does before it crashes into the shore. But Kaz had fainted before that taunt power had snapped and exploded. He'd dropped down cold as though someone had flipped an off switch in him. Well, he'd fainted before but there had never been that dark cloud of power hanging around him like there had been that morning.

"_Fear is only in our minds, taking over all the time. Fear is only in our minds but it's taking over all the tiiiiimeeee! You poooor, sweeeeet innocent thing. Dry your eyes and testifyyyyyyy. And, oh, you love to hate me, don't you, honey! I'm you're sacrifiiiiiice!"_

And Mercy had seemed on edge too though for what reason, Tom couldn't fathom. She kept a close eye on Kaz as though afraid he might faint again. Tom wondered briefly if something had happened between the two of them in the Nurse's Office. Then he shook his head with a frown. Mercy and Kaz were tight, no way anything would come between them.

_Ah,_ Said a cold, logical voice in his mind, _But something came between the two of you, didn't it?_

_So I messed up. Everyone does._

The voice had no reply. Tom sighed and ran a hand tiredly through his thick, black locks. What an awful day. And even though they'd been hanging out together, he'd felt it had only gotten worse.

Sarah and Peyton had pretty much ignored him all day. At least, Sarah had. Whether it was out of spite for what he'd done or just because, she had hardly sent a glance in his direction. And oddly enough it had hurt. Tom felt jealous and sick and hurt all at the same time.

_Because you want her to pay attention to _you_._ Said the obnoxious voice in his head.

_Shut up._ Great, now he was reprimanding himself. He must be really tired. Or Kaz was wearing off on him. Kaz talked to himself all the time, especially when he was drawing.

"_Do you wonder why you haaatte? Are you still to weak to survive your misstaaaakkkees?"_

Tom kicked off his clothes and dove under the blankets before the cold, October night air could sting him. Heating didn't always extend into the bedrooms, especially when you had your door closed all day. Kaz kept his open all the time so it was a toaster over in there; not to mention the boy slept under mountains of blankets in the cold weather.

Tom yawned as he switched off his bedside lamp and closed his eyes. The thrum of Kaz's music swirled in his head. He pulled the covers over his ears and buried himself in his pillow.

"_You poooor, sweeeeeet innocent thing. Dry your eyes and testiffyyyyyy. You know you live to break me—don't deny. Sweet sacrifiiiiiccceee!"_

And then he was asleep.

-Somewhere…-

He snarled in anger, grabbing a steel filing cabinet in his large hands and throwing it to the hard floor with a resounding clang. Papers spewed everywhere like a fountain of white. Then, just for good measure and because he was so angry, he blew them up.

Ash and smoldering bits drifted down to rest on the mess he'd made of the place.

Oh, was he pissed.

After all that trouble to get here and now he could go no further. Unintelligible words that were no doubt the worst curses he could muster flew past his lips as he stomped through the wreckage. He could quit now and it would make no difference in the end.

But no…

He _wanted_ it.

He _had_ to have it.

And to get it…

He reached the other side and stared at the blank wall with narrowed eyes. Stupid, infuriating wall. He'd slashed at it, shot at it, blown up things on it, and had come very close to ordering a vehicle smashed through it before his head had cooled.

There was only one way to get what he wanted and there were several walls in his way. This wall was just one of them. And this place…this place had become like a prison. He could not go forward but nor could he turn back.

People were counting on him.

He allowed a dark smile to lift the corners of his wide lips and show a glint of jagged teeth.

He was close. So close.

All he needed was some more time…

* * *

_Translations: Vita Dictata – Life Lessons, Procul termanis of Orbis Terrarum – At the End of the World, Respiro – Breathe Again_

_O.O I wonder what that little tid-bit at the end was? Hmmm, I do wonder. Can you guess? Hee, hee, hee. Virtual cookies for people who guess who that was, where they were, and what they were trying to do. And _you_! Yeah, you who already knows the plot! Don't you _dare_ say anything! I know where you live! (squinty-eyed glare)_

_In any case, I got hit with a bad case of Writer's Block working on this chapter and that's why it sucks so bad in the middle. Not to mention I've been pretty busy these last couple of days. I had two performances for the school play one night and didn't get home until, like, twelve at night (but only after I'd almost gotten my head cleaved in two by a wooden beam and almost fainting, ha, ha). The next day I had a Band Festival and then Prom and I didn't get home until two. Man, I was exhausted. _

_Thanks for being patient, guys. And not badgering me about updating. Means a lot. Thank you so much. _

_So thank you all so much for reading! Please keep up! The good stuff's coming!_

_Kaz: And this stuff isn't good?_

_What're you doing here!? Quit that! You keep sneaking into my A/N's! I'm gonna—gosh darn it, I hope your toilets get plugged!_

_Kaz:……You're insane._

_Yes I am! Aaaaaanyway, thank you for reading, please keep doing so, and please keep reviewing! Reviews magically spawn more chapters (I wish) and teach Rarran a thing or two about locking up my chapters! Ha!_


	10. Habitum Meus Manus

_Sorry for the late update, I got hit with some more Writer's Block and go distracted by my new fan fiction, The Files of Kazdan Kalinkas. Very dark and angsty that is._

_Awwww, no one tried to guess who was at the end of the last chapter…_

_Oh, so, I had one person suddenly question why only Kaz got the dreams and no one else did. That made me grin. You'll find out. Not in this chapter. But later. Much later. X3

* * *

_

**Habitum Meus Manus

* * *

**

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Mercy and Valerie's room-

"Well, aren't you the perfect picture of eternal joy and happiness." Valerie Miles smiled at Mercy as she strolled into the room the two of them shared.

"Well, yeah." Mercy flicked her hair over her shoulder and smiled back, sitting on the couch next to her roommate, "Kaz is sooooo excited to go to the dance with me and I can't _wait_!" She giggled.

Valerie looked away from her companion and frowned at her hands. Mercy noticed, "What?"

"It's just…Mercy, he's a…he's kind…"

"You don't like him 'cause he's Goth, is that what you're saying?"

"No! Well, kind of…" Valerie licked her lips, refusing to look at Mercy's angry expression, "Mercy, he's kind of weird. Everyone knows it. I mean, he's picked fights with Tom and he hangs around with Aras."

"So what!?"

"He's a Goth! Goths are weird!"

"So!?"

"I just don't think he's good enough for you!"

Mercy stared at Valerie in shock. Then her eyes narrowed.

"Who are you to say who's good enough for me?" She hissed. Then she stood up and left.

-Queen of Hearts Café, Bravura Boulevard-

Kaz sat by himself in a well lit corner of his favorite café, a steaming mug of caramel and chocolate latté sitting on the small, two-person table and his sketchpad on his lap, propped against the edge of the table.

Soft, piano and string music was filtering from the hidden speakers, the smell of coffee and cookies drifted around the place, and there was a quiet whisper of talk from the other costumers, a murmur in the background. All in all, a pleasant, almost perfect, café.

Kaz contented himself with sketching his pencil across the paper, occasionally stopping to take a drink or sit back and listen to the music. Sometimes he frowned and grabbed his eraser off the table where it sat next to his drink, rubbing away some error that polluted his art work. He was so intent upon his project that he didn't even notice Jo-Jo walk in.

The older boy looked around for a place to sit, saw Kaz sitting by himself in a corner, and bounced over with a huge smile of his face,

"Heeeeyyyy, Kazzy! What's ya' doin' here by yourself? Ain't you hangin' with Mercy?"

Kaz looked up and blinked, pencil hovering over his paper. Then he smiled and shook his head, "Nah, I just need some alone time to think. What're you doing here?"

"Getting' a coffee. Black, ma'am." Jo-Jo said to the waitress and then leaned over the table to look at Kaz's drawing. The bespectacled boy flipped his sketchpad over and showed Jo-Jo the unfinished work, "Whoa. Mercy was right. You are a sliiiiiiick one!" He studied the picture more closely, "What's it of, hm?"

"Ah…um…" Kaz turned a shade of pink that was slightly lighter than his glasses, "It's…just a drawing…a picture I got from a…a sort of feeling." He turned even redder, "That sounds weird, doesn't it. I mean, h-how can you draw a picture of a _feeling_."

"Nuh-uh!" Jo-Jo shook his head, eyes alight, "That's what drawing _is_! It's _feelings_!" Kaz looked at him incredulously, "Awwwwww, don't tell me you don't draw when you're upset or angry! See, that's putting emotions on paper!"

"But this different from that." Kaz set his sketchpad aside and took a drink of his mixed flavor latté, "It's just, I don't even know how to explain this, I had a…no, I just got this feeling but it wasn't a feeling it was like…like…um…" He ground the heel of his palm into his forehead, trying to find the words, "Like that moment when you wake up but you're not completely awake and you're still sort of dreaming. That sort of lethargic sensation you get when you don't quite know reality from dreams…" He trailed off because Jo-Jo was staring at him with wide eyes over the rim of his coffee mug that had arrived during the conversation.

There was a silence between the two; Jo-Jo sipping his coffee and Kaz doing likewise with his latté.

Then Jo-Jo said, "That is some deeeeeeeeeep stuff, Kaz. Reeeeaaaaaallll deep stuff."

"Yep." Kaz muttered in response, looking down into the dregs of his latté.

"Deep, deep stuff."

"Mm-hm."

"Gah!" Jo-Jo rubbed a hand through his hair, "This is giving me a headache! Subject changing time! Have you tried on your costume yet?"

"No, not yet."

"Do it! Tonight!" Jo-Jo stood up, pulling a couple of ones out to drop them on the table, "Oh yeah, how old are you, Kaz?"

"Seventeen. Why?"

"When's your birthday?"

"December, just like Tom's and Peyton's and Sarah's. Why do you wanna know?"

"Surprise, surprise!" Jo-Jo chuckled and skipped out the door into the cold, October air.

Kaz shook his head at the older boy's antics and looked back at his sketchpad with half interest. The light pencil sketch of a woman in a long flowing dress and short hair but no face yet discolored the perfectly white paper. Kaz sighed and closed the sketch book. Then he stuck his pencil behind his ear, put his eraser in his pocket, fished a couple of bills out to pay for the latté, and walked out, turning up the collar of his black trench coat as he did so.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's room-

Tom was watching some strange animated thing in which a black haired boy was screaming at some towering, giant, vaguely humanoid thing when Kaz walked through the door. He shut the door, paused when he saw what was playing, and asked,

"What the heck are you watching?"

"_Yu Yu Hakusho_. Some of Sarah's anime; she's letting me borrow it." He didn't look away from the screen. The vaguely humanoid thing stabbed his fingers into another character and blood gushed out across the ground, "Uncut, of course."

"Of course." Kaz kicked off his boots and tossed his coat into his room, "It's almost cold enough for snow out there."

"_You took my teacher,"_ Said the boy on the television. The person who'd been killed had obviously been a friend of his, _"And now I let you take my friend. What the hell do you want from me?"_

"Not until November." Tom muttered in response, still staring at the screen.

"Riiiiggght, like the weather's going to wait for you." Kaz rolled his eyes.

"_Don't you think I wanted to use my powers to win this tournament and go home? I just…didn't know how to find them. And now I have to live with that."_

"I think Yusuke beats you in the angst department, Kaz." Tom pointed to the sobbing boy on the television and grinned at his friend.

"Don't compare me to some cartoon from Japan." Kaz replied hotly and slammed the door shut to his room. But not before Tom shouted after him,

"It's not a cartoon!"

Kaz snorted and sat down on his bed with a heavy sigh. His sketch pad, pencil, and eraser sat next to him. He stared at the drawer where his costume was stashed. Jo-Jo had told him to try it on. Well, it couldn't hurt. He stood up and reached for the handle when his phone went off in his pocket.

"_Bend me, break me, anyway you need me! All I want is yooouuuuu! Bend me, break me, breaking down is easy! All I want is yooou—!"_ The ringtone he'd set for Mercy. He flipped the phone open.

"Hey Mercy, what's up?"

"_Hey Kaz! I just talked to Jo-Jo on the phone and he had a great idea."_

"What?"

"_Meet me in the Dance Studio in that little corner on the South side of campus an hour before the dance and I'll do your make-up for you!"_

_Make-up?_ Kaz thought but stuttered a response confirming that he'd meet her there and hung up. He set the phone aside a little warily and turned his attention back to the drawer. For some reason, it now seemed ominous to him.

He reached out and pulled it open.

And he saw why Mercy said she needed to do his make-up.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, October 31st, The Gymnasium-

Music was blaring so loudly from the speakers set up by the DJ that it was a wonder anyone could form a coherent thought in their minds. Not to mention the hypnotically swinging and flashing, multi-colored lights that lit the gym in a blaze of spectrum colors.

Orange and black streamers were looped across the high ceiling, fake bats dangling among them, flickering fake jack-o-lanterns sat in corners and along the walls, grinning and sneering at passersby, skulls and witches and other Halloween themed decorations littered the walls, and a buffet table; complete with five different drinks and a large assortment of food; was laid out against he back wall.

The Student Council had done an excellent job of making the Halloween Dance very…Halloween-y-ish.

Tom was standing sullenly by himself in an empty corner. He'd just seen Klay (dressed as Hitler) and Krystella (dressed as a Nazi soldier) swallowing each other's faces across the room through the mass of dancers. He didn't have a date, having told Krystella flat out that he wasn't going with her after the whole fiasco with the cigarette.

Tom himself was wearing a taupe kimono with a wooden sword tucked into the belt and sandals on his feet. But he was uncomfortable to be alone. Neither Sarah, nor Peyton, nor Kaz and Mercy had shown up yet and he was wondering if they were showing up at all. Perhaps Kaz had told Sarah and Peyton about what had happened and now they were all angry and standing him up because of it.

But no, Kaz wouldn't spill out something like that to Sarah and Peyton like a five year old tattling on a fellow youngster. Kaz was above that. Kaz had his pride.

"Hey Grouchy." Came a familiar voice and Tom looked around to see Sarah and Peyton standing in front of him. It was Peyton who had spoken. He was dressed as a mage or a wizard with a flowing blue and purple cloak, white, lace-up under shirt, long tan pants, and (these ruined the effect slightly) sneakers. It seemed he'd been unable to acquire suitable footwear.

Sarah was stunning. She had come as some sort of exotic dancer. Her golden hair was pulled back and woven with silver chains and strings of sparkling beads the glittered in the flashing lights, she wore a sleeveless, crimson top with thin straps that hitched up just enough to show her midriff but still obey school policy, and a pair of matching harem pants. Gold bangle jingled on her wrists and ankles and she had on soft crimson shoes that curled at the toes.

"Hey guys," Tom had to shout to be heard over the music, "What took you so long?"

"I was having trouble with my hair." Sarah responded, gesturing to the intricate way she'd had it styled, "Andrea couldn't get it to stay."

"Have you seen Kaz and Mercy?"

"Nope." Came the answer.

Tom was about to add in a response when he noticed something slightly unsettling.

Peyton and Sarah were holding hands.

He swallowed thickly, feeling jealous without even knowing why. Probably because he didn't have a date. Yeah, that was why. He didn't have a date and he was jealous because…because Sarah and Peyton came together.

"Let's go find Kaz." He brushed past them without waiting for an answer. He flicked his gaze from couple to couple, from group to group, looking for his best friend and his best friend's girlfriend. He didn't find Kaz (though he did see Aras dressed up as some sort of punk Grim Reaper teasing a group of Senior girls). Tom wandered back to the buffet, Sarah and Peyton trailing behind him, and reached for a drink of Sprite. A skeletal hand reached for it at the same time.

"Tom!" Kaz's voice said and Tom looked up in wonder.

"Kaz?" It sure as heck didn't look like Kaz. His best friend's face was completely white with large black circles around his eyes that made them look sunken. His hair was slicked back and temporarily sprayed white so it blended in with his make-up. Kaz was dressed in a well fitting black suit with thin white stripes and a bat at the base of his neck. His hands were painted to look exactly like that of a skeleton's. The only sign that it was Kaz were pink tinted glasses.

Beside him stood a girl who could only be Mercy. Her mahogany hair was disheveled but in an artistic sort of way, making it look almost like dreadlocks or dangles of yarn. Her dress was ragged and patchwork and there were stitched up seams artfully drawn into her skin.

"Sally and Jack from _The Nightmare Before Christmas_!" Peyton hooted, "Where'd you guys get those!?"

"A friend of Mercy's made them for us!" Kaz smiled, "Doesn't this place look incredible!" Then he noticed Sarah and Peyton, "Hold on a second…you two…didn't come together…did you?" Sarah blushed and nodded and Peyton looked so flustered he didn't know what to say. Mercy giggled and nudged Kaz in side. He glanced at her and she tugged his hand,

"Let's go dance!"

"D-dance!?" Kaz was probably turning red underneath all that white make-up.

Tom laughed, "Mercy, you've never seen Kaz dance before, have you?"

"Oh, be quiet you!" Mercy snapped at him playfully and before Kaz could protest, she'd dragged him into the middle of the dancers. Kaz grinned sheepishly. He really didn't know how to dance. He usually avoided dancing when he and his friends went to dances, preferring to hang out against a wall or near the snacks.

"Come on, Kaz! Move with the music!" Mercy looped her arms around his neck and started swaying. Kaz's hands automatically went to her waist and he blushed when he realized what was happening. But he was already moving with her to the music and it would look stupid and uncool to stop. So he looked across the gym, over the sea of heads, and stared at the opposite wall like it was the most fascinating thing in the world.

_"What can I do? How will I be getting through? Noooowww that I must trryyyyy to leave it all behiiiiinnnd."_ It was "Forever and One" by Helloween. Kaz grinned as he listened to the song; at least they were playing some good music, _"Did you see what you have done to me? So haaaarrrrd to justifyyyyyy. Slowly it's passiiinnggg byyyyyyyy."_

"You're singing along with it..." Mercy mumbled in a somewhat sleepy voice. She had her head resting on his chest with her eyes closed, enjoying his closeness and warmth.

"Sorry, did you want me to stop?"

"No...it's okay..." She sounded as though she was going to fall asleep in his arms.

_"Forever and oooooonnneee I will miss you! Howeeeeever, I kiss you yet again, way down in Neverlaaaaaannnnd! How haaarrrrrd I was tryin'! Tomooooorrrooowww I'll still be cryin'! How can you hiiiiiiideee your lies! Your lies!"_

"You know, I've been thinking about those dreams you told me about," Mercy said, opening her eyes but keeping her head resting on her boyfriend's chest, "And I think maybe you just have an extremely active imagination."

Kaz groaned, "Not you too, Mercy! That's what Sarah said! It doesn't _feel_ that way! When I have those dreams it's like I'm looking at another world through another person's eyes! It scares me!" He snapped his mouth shut. He hadn't meant to say that.

_"Here I am, seeing you once again. My miiiiind's far away, my heart's too close to staaayyyy. Too proud to fight. I'm walking back into night. Wiiiillll I ever fiiind someone to belieeeeevvvveee?"_

"Are you really scared of your dreams?" Mercy was looking up at him now with curiosity, "Aren't you scared of, you know, roller coasters or something normal like that? What about Klay? Are you scared of Klay?"

"Why would I be scared of jerkwad like him? I just hate him, that's all." Kaz grumbled, not meeting Mercy's gaze, "And no, I'm not really scared of much else. Except fish. I hate fish too." Mercy giggled and Kaz rolled his eyes, "Oh, yeah, you think it's funny now but wait until you're swimming in a lake and the next thing you know there's a slimy, cold, flopping thing jumping around in your swimming trunks!" He was turning ruby red underneath his make-up.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry!" Mercy smiled, "But seriously, you're afraid of dreams because of the way you feel when you have them."

"Yeah..." Kaz was looking at the floor now and they'd stopped moving, "Is that...stupid?"

_"Forever and ooooonneee I will miss you! Howeeevver, I kiss you yet again, way down in Neverlaaaannnd! So haaaarrrrd I was tryin'! Tomooooorrroow I'll still be cryin'! How can you hiiiiiddeee your lies! Your lies! Your lies..."_

"No," Mercy said as the song ended and another began, "I don't think it's stupid. If it's scaring you, maybe you should go see someone professional about it, huh?"

"Professional? You mean, like, a shrink?"

_"They call me the Wiiillld Roooossee. But my naaaame is Eliiisaaa Daaayy. Why they caalll me that I do not knooowww. For my name is Elisa Day."_

"No, no, no, well...maybe...yeah, sort of..." Mercy turned pink, "Y-you know what, just forget I said anything!"

"Rrrriiiigghtt..."

_"From the first day I saw I knew she was the one as she stared in my eyes and smiled. For her lips were the color of the roses that grew down the river, all bloody and wild."_

They danced in silence for a while, listening to the music. Kaz saw Peyton and Sarah dancing together and smiled to himself. And it seemed Tom wasn't going to be given the cold shoulder by some of the single girls who'd shown up together. There were at least three of them fighting over who was going to dance with him next.

_"When he knocked on my door and entered the room, my trembling subsided in his sure embrace. He would be my first man, and with a careful hand he wiped the tears that ran down my face."_

The lights were a soft blue and white, spiraling slowly across the gym. There were couples dancing together all over the place and those that did not have a date were hanging at the edges of the gym, watching the rest of students. Werewolves swayed back and forth with witches, knights in plastic armor were holding princesses in their arms, and vampires danced with cheerleaders. It was really a monster mash, so to speak.

_"They call me the Wiiilllld Roooose. But my naaammee is Eliiiisaaa Daaayyyy. Why they call me that I do not knoooowww. For my name is Elisa Day. On the second day I brought her a flower. She was more beautiful than any woman I'd seen. I said 'Do you know where the wild roses grow so sweet and scarlet and free?'"_

"You know what, this is kind of a sad song." Mercy said. She was leaning against Kaz again as they moved slowly around on the spot, holding each other close, "My cousin listened to his song a lot. It was her favorite."

_"On the second day he came with a single rose, said 'Will you give me your loss and your sorrow?' I nodded my head, as I lay on the bed. He said, 'If I show the roses will you follow?'"_

"Oh yeah?" Kaz was half listening.

"Yeah," Mercy responded, "And then she left and never came back. They found her body in an alley two months later. She'd jumped or fallen off a building." Mercy's voice choked and Kaz unconsciously held her closer.

"Heeyyyyy, shhhhhh." He rubbed a hand up and down her back in a comforting manner, "Don't cry! This is supposed to be a happy dance!"

_"They call me the Wiiiillld Rooosssee. But my naaammmme is Eliiisaaa Daaayyy. Why they call me that I do not knnooooowwww. For my name is Elisa Day."_

"I'm not crying." Mercy said solidly, "I just…this song is sad and there a lot of sad things that go along with it. Mainly people leaving me." She clenched her finger on the suit of his costume, "You're not going anywhere though. I'm not going to let you."

"_On the third day he took me to the river. He showed me the roses and we kissed. And the last thing I heard was a muttered word as he stood smiling above me with a rock in his fist."_ Kaz, having never heard the song before, suddenly realized why Mercy had called it sad, _"On the third day I took her where the wild roses grow and she lay on the bank, the wind light as a thief. As I kissed her goodbye, I said, 'All beauty must die.' And knelt down and planted a rose between her teeth. They call me the Wiilllld Rooosseee. But my naaammmee is Ellliiiisaaa Daaayyyy. Why they call me that I do not knnoooowww. For my name is Elisa Day. For my name is Elisa Day…for my name is Elisa Day…"_

The song ended and a rap piece started playing. Kaz did not consider rap to be actual music so he led Mercy off the dance floor and they positioned themselves next to the buffet.

"What're you doing after you get out of here, Kaz?" Mercy asked suddenly.

"Uh…I…I was kind of planning on an…art based career. Like, I dunno, designing CD covers or something."

"CD covers?"

"Okay, maybe not CD covers," Kaz shrugged, green and red lights playing across his face like a Christmas tree, "But, how about, concept art for movies. That'd be cool."

"Hmmmm," Mercy looked away, "Does that mean you'd be going somewhere far away?"

"Uh…yeah, I guess so…" Kaz didn't understand why Mercy cared where he went, "Why?"

"I don't want you to go far away." She answered, still not looking at him, "I know that's a stupid and selfish thing to say but I just…I don't…" She finally faced him again, "You're a really nice person and I don't want to…lose you."

Kaz didn't realize he was blushing until he started sweating under the collar of his suit. Well this was only a little bit embarrassing. Nobody had ever spoken to him like this before.

"_I'd rather know my son; the heir to the Throne of the UnderWorld; is somewhere far away and safe then have him in my sights and in Death's grip."_

What the—? Where had that thought come from? A movie? A video game? No, for some reason that didn't click right. He shook his head, clearing the thought from his mind. It was like he'd told Mercy, this was a happy dance. A time for smiles, not a time for contemplation and fears.

He took Mercy's hand in his own and smiled at her, "Hey, let's keep dancing. I think I'm getting the hang of it."

* * *

_Translations: Habitum Meus Manus – Hold My Hand_

_I'm at my local library finishing this up and watching _Raznus Returns_ while I'm at it. Well, trying to. The computer keeps stopping me from streaming it or something along those lines. Bunk-ish computer. _

_And I'm hungry._

_Ah well, you can't have everything I suppose. (shrugs)_

_Sorry this turned out kind of dumb. I actually don't like this chapter that much and am disappointed with myself. This could have been so much better if I hadn't been hit by Writer's Block. Ah, that's no excuse, is it?_

_Aaannnyyyyway, thank you all so much for reading and being patient with my slow updating, please keep reading and don't forget to review! Reviews bring more chapters and keep the warm weather around! Yeah for spring! _


	11. Casses Lacuna

_How the heck do you spell frappuccino? Or is it frappichino? Or frapicino? My _gosh_, who came up with this thing!?

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_

**Casses Lacuna

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**

-????-

_**Fire roared above his head and he screamed in panic, dropping the weapon he'd been holding, and turning to run only to be blasted backwards by a well-aimed beam of energy. His life was extinguished.**_

_**Blackness.**_

_**Now he was sitting upon his steed, staring across the land at the mass destruction that had resulted in their foolish actions. Sorrow and anger filled him. **_

_**Blackness.**_

_**He stood amongst proud warriors who would die for their lord, battle ready and pumped with adrenaline. But when he saw **_**them**_** coming over the rise. Fear sent ice through his veins. His gaze locked with one of **_**theirs **_**and everything was wiped perfectly clean. He turned on his comrades and raised his blade to cut them down.**_

_**Blackness.**_

_**Blood stained the earth. Buildings lay in ruins. Bodies littered the streets. The city has fallen. There was nothing left here. He'd lost almost everything he'd had. Peace and love were things of the past. With a sigh heavy with grief, he turned his back on the once majestic metropolis and walked away.**_

_**Blackness.**_

_**The clang of metal on metal. The screams of rage, pain, and battle induced adrenaline. The heavy smell of blood and sweat. The battle raged around him like a nightmare made real. Never had he seen anything so brutal. Then he saw his lord and master rise out of the ranks like a pillar of iron willed strength. Glowing, neon blue eyes glared fiercely as he roared orders and hurled insults at his foes. Fire lashed from his hands. **_

_**But he didn't see the enemies bearing down on them from above until it was too late…**_

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's room, 10:18 am-

Kaz jerked awake with a strangled yell that was choked by a gasp of shock. He was breathing heavily and staring wide-eyed at nothing. Then, after getting his bearings, he fell back onto his bed and closed his eyes. Something trickled down the side of his face and he wiped it away, opening his eyes to stare at his fingertips.

Sweat.

And he was shaking too.

That…that _nightmare_ vision had scared him out of his mind. It hadn't been like his previous dreams. Not in the least bit. This was something else entirely. He'd been with someone else during that ride of terror. He'd felt their presence as they'd jumped from scene to scene like some horrific movie preview.

And at the end…

The end…that towering figure who; now that he tried to focus; simply slipped away as easily as the breeze slips through a persons fingers. He couldn't bring them to mind and it frustrated him for some reason. He'd been scared for them, terrified that he'd lose them…

Kaz rubbed his eyes wearily. It was the morning after the Halloween Dance and he'd spent almost an hour in the shower last night washing all that make-up and hairspray off of himself. He felt around for his glasses and put them on, sitting up with a jaw-popping yawn. Then he swung his legs over the edge of the bed, the nightmare already trickling away, and stumbled for the door in the darkness of his room.

He walked out of his bedroom and into the living room where the curtains were drawn against the sunlight but the TV was. Kaz squinted in the light coming from the screen. When his eyes adjusted, he made out Tom sitting on the couch, still looking half asleep himself.

"What're you doing?" Kaz asked with another yawn, plopping down on the couch as well.

"Watching the news."

"Why the news?"

"One word: hot." Tom indicated the anchorwomen on the screen and Kaz rolled his eyes.

"You never think with your head, do you?" The bespectacled boy stretched his arms to the ceiling and yawned a third time.

"Oh, I think with my head but it only knows three words." Tom had a cheeky sort of edge to his voice and Kaz looked at him with a confused expression.

"Huh?"

"Yes, no, and good morning."

"Oh, you're just sick." Kaz muttered, pushing himself off the couch and heading for the kitchen, "Did you already eat, Pervert?"

"Nope. Just woke up a few minutes ago." Tom took his gaze away from the screen and grinned at Kaz, "You were talking in your sleep. Very loudly."

"Yeah, well, you snore sometimes." Kaz retorted hotly, marching into the kitchen and starting to rummage around for something to make.

"So what? At least I don't speak gibberish."

"Gibberish?" Kaz was bent down with his head in a cabinet, searching for the pan he wanted to use.

"Mm-hm. You were saying something like…" There was a pause as Tom tried to remember, "Something like "poco…terms…orbis ter…" or something like that."

Kaz jumped and hit his head. He withdrew, rubbing his hand through his disheveled red locks, and said, "_Procul termanis of orbis terrarum_." He looked up to see Tom nodding, "If you're wondering what it means, don't ask. I don't know." And he went back to the cabinet.

"If you don't know what it means then how come you were saying it in your sleep?"

"I dunno. I don't care. Just let me cook. Go watch your supposedly hot anchor woman." Kaz was irritated and he didn't even know why. For some reason, he felt like this was all an intrusion upon his privacy. Tom stared at him, "Go on, get out." Tom backed away, looking confused and a little hurt, but he disappeared into the living room anyway. Kaz made sure he was alone and then went about preparing some eggs.

"_Procul terminus of orbis terrarum…respiro…_" He murmured under his breath, brow furrowed. It was familiar and yet foreign. What was it? Greek? German? Chinese? He didn't know. Only that it lingered at the back of his mind, fading in and out like a firefly in the darkness.

He heard his mobile going off in his bedroom and left the unmade breakfast on the counter. The phone's screen was bright enough to light up the room. He picked his way through the mess and snatched his phone up.

It was Peyton.

"_Duuudddddeeeee, was that not the most awesomist thing eveeeerrrrr!?"_

"What? The dance?"

"_Well, duh!"_

Kaz smiled, remembering the time he'd spent with Mercy, "Yeah…that was amazing…"

"_So Sarah was sayin' she totally wants to go for some hot chocolate at Queen o' Hearts. You in, my bro?"_

"Yeah, just let me get Tom." Kaz walked back out into the living room, phone still to his ear and stopped, puzzled. The television was still going but Tom was no longer sitting in front of it, "Tom? Tom, where'd you go?"

"_What's going on? You lose Major T?"_

"Looks that wa—HOLY CRAP! TOM!" Kaz let the phone clatter to the kitchen floor as he ran to his best friend's side.

Tom was throwing up into the kitchen waste basket, coughing each time he did. A faint sheen of sweat coated his forehead, his arms were shuddering as they gripped the edge of the trash so tightly his knuckles turned white, and after a while he could only dry heave. Kaz hurriedly filled a glass of water and handed it to Tom who took it gratefully and gulped it down.

"You okay?" Kaz asked, crouching beside Tom as the other boy sagged to the floor, running a shaky hand through his black hair, "What happened?"

"I dunno…I think I fell asleep on the couch…" Tom had his eyes closed his he was talking in a slightly unsteady voice. He was really shaken up, "I started seeing things…blood…everywhere…my head hurt, I ached all over the place…then I woke up and…" He gestured listlessly to the garbage can.

"You goin' be oka—hold on, you saw things? Like…" Kaz swallowed, "Like fighting? A war?"

"I think so…" Tom opened his eyes and looked around at Kaz, "Why?"

"'Cause I…I…" Kaz didn't really want to bring up the subject of his dreams/nightmares anymore because Tom usually made fun of him when he did, "Well, I was thinking that…maybe you were watching too many M-Rated movies and eating too much junk food."

He didn't know if Tom bought it or not because in the silence that followed, Peyton's tiny, distant voice could be heard shouting over the cell phone that still lay abandoned on the floor. Kaz scrambled over and picked it up.

"—_at Kazzy!? What's going on over there!? Is Tom dying!? Can I have his _Green Day_ CDs? When's the—!?"_

"Peyton, chill. Tom's fine. He just got a little sick is all." Kaz glanced around at Tom but the boy was still on the floor looking a bit worse for wear, "How about just you and Sarah go and—."

Tom was on his feet in and instant. He stalked over to Kaz and snatched the phone from him, "I'm fine, Peyton! Meet you there in a few minutes!" And he snapped the mobile closed, pushing the device back into Kaz's hands with a satisfied smile. Then he caught sight of Kaz's smirk, "What?"

"Nothing…" Kaz replied, turning around to go back into his room and get dressed. Tom hurried after him, demanding to know why Kaz was wearing such a smug expression. Kaz's answer was to shut the door in Tom's face.

Now he understood what Mercy had been giggling about a couple weeks ago.

-Queen of Hearts Café, Bravura Boulevard, Noon-

It was just the four of them; the four siblings not even related by blood or name but simply by bonds. Mercy had been unable to attend due to a test she had to retake. So Kaz sat in the middle of the tension, trying to ignore it.

Tom was on his right, rhythmically stirring his quickly cooling frappuccino, and was having an on-and-off glaring match with Peyton. Peyton was on Kaz's left and Sarah was sitting next to Peyton. Kaz knew why there was so much anxiety between the three of them. Mercy had seen it long before he had.

A love triangle.

It was stupid, and cliché, and classic all at the same time.

Tom had a crush on Sarah that he would never admit to because of his ego, Peyton had a crush on Sarah too but he was more open, and Sarah had a crush on Tom but she was never going to make the first move, expecting him to do it when he never would.

So when Sarah had been teasing Tom about not having a date to the dance, it hadn't just been playful, she'd been throwing him hints. Hints he'd obviously hadn't caught because when he got angry and turned and asked Krystella instead, it had crushed Sarah. Peyton, realizing that Sarah liked Tom and not him, had been flattened and slightly hurt. But Sarah, feeling a bit spiteful and broken hearted, had confided her problems to none other than Mercy. Mercy had told Sarah that (and Kaz could see this playing in his mind, all day dreams and make believe) if Sarah asked Peyton instead, maybe Tom would take the clue.

Well, Tom had gotten a clue alright but he hadn't taken it nicely. Who he was angrier with it was hard to tell but Kaz was willing to bet it was Peyton.

Kaz looked down, down into the depths of his hot chocolate, feeling blank and out of sorts. He'd felt that way since he'd woken up that morning. Tom's random bout of sickness hadn't helped either. What was going on? First the dreams and now these visions—for Kaz was certain they were visions of something. He sighed and the coco rippled.

Then it rippled again as Peyton slammed a heavy fist on the table top, "What, _Tom_?" Oh, Peyton knew exactly "what." He'd known what he was getting into the moment he'd decided to call Kaz and offer the trip to the café.

"You're a jerk, Peyton Harding!" Tom spat.

_Uh-oh…_Kaz thought, slowly standing up, "Um…I'm just going to…go to the bath—."

"_I'm_ a jerk!?" Sarah looked up when Peyton raised his voice. Kaz froze, half-way out of his seat, "_You're_ the one who never got over your stupid ego enough to ask!"

"Ego!? _Ego_!?" Tom snarled back, "I'll show you ego! Get a reality check and _break up with Sarah_!?"

Sarah's eyes widened. Several of the patrons were staring at their table by now and one of the waiters was frowning at them. Kaz winced and waved his hands at Tom and Peyton, telling them to be quiet, but they ignored him. Both of them were on their feet now, shouting across the table at each other.

"Don't tell me what to do, Tom Majors! Just because you weren't smart enough to realize—!"

"Hey! I got a great idea! Why don't you do us all a favor and just friggen' disappear!?"

"Jealous 'cause I got Sarah and you didn't!?"

"Jealous!? Never! I don't think you're worth her ti—!"

"That's enough!" Sarah rocketed to her feet, fuming with rage and looked fiercely between the two of them, "Stop fighting over me! This is so…so stupid!" She stomped her foot on the floor, "I don't want anything to do with either of you until you can get over yourselves! Good-bye!" She slammed a ten on the tabletop and stomped away. Tom, Kaz, and Peyton all stared after her with their mouths hanging open. Never before had they seen Sarah Adams lose her temper like that.

"Whoa…" Kaz murmured, falling back into his seat, "That was scary…"

Tom cocked an eyebrow and then rounded on Peyton, "Okay, apologize."

"What!?" Peyton snapped, "You expect me to apologize to you!? For what!? You're the idiot here!"

"No way! Kaz," Tom turned to look at his best friend and Peyton did too. Kaz shrank down under their sparking stares, "Who has to apologize first!?"

Kaz really didn't want to be in the middle of the conflict. He just knew it was going to end badly. But he swallowed past the lump in his throat all the same, took a deep breath, and said,

"Actually, you both kind of started it. So you should both apologize to Sa—."

"Who's side are you on!?" They shouted at him at the same time and then, snarling and snapping at one another, they left the Queen of Hearts.

Kaz was left by himself, once again abandoned by his companions. He pushed his glasses up and rubbed a hand over his eyes. Those golden chains of friendship that had held them together were being melted by fires of anger. If this kept up, there'd be chasms to wide for them to cross between them. The other three couldn't see this, they were too blinded by their belief that they were right and the others were wrong. So it all came down to Kaz to become the go-between.

Great, now he was a messenger boy.

-Dusklit Park-

The park was Kaz's first choice to look for any of his friends because it was secluded and large and there were many spots to hang out or hide. He wandered on and off the paths, checking all their usual hang-outs. If a person is upset, he reasoned, then they'd want to go somewhere they are comfortable in order to feel better.

Sure enough, he found Sarah sitting on the old, metal and rubber swing sets behind a line of trees. They kept meaning to tear them down but had always forgotten. That was fine with the teens of both Public and Private schools, it was a nice place to hang and chat.

But Sarah was by herself, sitting on one lonely swing, and staring at the ground.

Kaz sat down on the swing next to her and wrapped his fingers around the exposed metal chain. It was cold against his bare fingers.

"Hey." He said softly, "You okay?"

"What do you think?" Sarah replied coldly.

"Sorry, standard question." Kaz gave a soft snort of laughter, his breath frosting in the air before fading away, "If it's any consolation, they walked out on me when I wouldn't take sides."

"They're so stupid and selfish…" Sarah muttered, her golden hair curtaining her face, "I can't say I hate them because I don't but sometimes they're just so frustrating." She raised her head and looked around at Kaz, "Why aren't you like that?"

"You're asking me? I always figured I was pretty stubborn. Besides," Kaz shrugged, unable to keep the smile off his face, "They're fighting over a girl." Sarah glared at him, "Alright, alright, sorry. Sheesh, why am I stuck playing comforter?"

Sarah actually cracked a smile. She was still angry at Tom and Peyton for acting so stupid but Kaz had a light hearted way of talking. Not to mention he could be a bit of an idiot. Sometimes his mouth worked before his brain did. He caught her smiling and grinned.

"Aha, points for me. I made you smile."

"You're so weird." Sarah put her chin in her hands, resting her elbows on her knees, "So what should I do?"

"Huh?"

"About Tom and Peyton?"

"What am I, a marriage councilor now?" Kaz absently fingered the neon spikes in his ears, "I don't know anything about relationships."

"You're dating Mercy." Sarah pointed out.

"Psh, like I know what I'm doing." Kaz rolled his eyes behind his pink-tinted glasses, "_You_ practically set us up together, you know. I don't know what the heck I'm supposed to do or what she expects from me."

"Just be yourself."

"Cliché…" Kaz replied in a sing-song voice, "Seriously though," He leaned forward, elbows hooked around the chains in a casual manner, "What do _you_ want to do?"

Sarah sighed and a great puff of white-gray formed in front of her face, "I dunno…I want Tom to like me but I don't want to hurt Peyton."

"I know."

"You and Tom fight all the time and you always make up in the end!" Sarah was saying this more to herself than to Kaz, "So why can't we all just…get along…and…and…"

"Oh no, Sarah! Don't cry!" Kaz leaned past his swing and patted her tentatively on the back. Sarah was one of the strongest people Kaz knew; for her to start crying…things really were falling apart.

"S-sorry Kaz!" She furiously wiped her eyes, "I j-just don't know…!"

"Don't know…what?"

"This is so _stupid_!" She glared at nothing, eyes rimmed in red from crying, "This…this…stupid nostalgic feeling I get!"

"You too then, huh?"

"What?" Sarah looked around at him.

"It's just…" Kaz felt his face heat up, "I haven't really talked about my vi—dreams because you guys always tease me. But the colder it gets, the more I feel…homesick." He glanced at her to make sure she wasn't baiting him.

She wasn't. There was honesty etched onto her face very clearly. Kaz looked away. For some reason, it hurt his heart to know that he wasn't imagining his melancholy because Sarah felt it too. But then, if Sarah was feeling that way…what about…

Kaz shot upright, grabbing Sarah's wrist, "Come on! We're gonna go find them!"

"What!? Who!?"

"Tom and Peyton! We're friends! We're practically _brothers and sister_! We're supposed to tell each other things, not get into fights!" He was running down the path towards the Academy, "So we're gonna go find them and set this whole thing right!"

Sarah rolled her eyes as she ran behind Kaz. He'd let go of her wrist and she was following along in his shadow. She glanced up at him. When had he gotten so tall?

-Dusklit Park-

Having finished her test, Mercy had headed straight for the Queen of Hearts, taking the long way through the park in order to give the siblings some alone time together. She heard running footsteps and wondered who would want to be jogging in this kind of weather.

She looked around and saw Kaz and Sarah running full tilt down a nearby path.

Kaz had his fingers wrapped around Sarah's wrist and was talking quickly, gesturing with his free hand the way he did when he was agitated or excited. His chocolate eyes were sparkling. Sarah was looking bemused but wasn't putting up a fight and there was a small smile on her lips.

They vanished around a corner, their footsteps ringing before they finally faded too.

Mercy stared at the spot where they had been.

What had that been about?

* * *

_Translations: Cassus Lacuna – Empty Words_

_From the depths of the Spirit World…COME THE FUZZY PINK BUNNY SLIPPERS! Mwahahahahahahahaha!_

_And they have bazookas. :)_

_Okay, serious now. All serious. _

_Sorry this took so long, I had to plan some things out and I got all lethargic over the weekend. The first weekend in a while I've actually had nothing going on and all I can do is drag myself around the house moaning. Pathetic. _

_On the other hand…_

_HOLY CRAP TO THE FALL SEASON SNEAK PREVIEW! I'VE WATCHED IT, LIKE, TEN TIMES AND I GET GOOSE-BUMPS EVERYTIME I DO! IT'S JUST…IT'S JUST…HOLY FREAKING CRAP!_

_(sighs) Okay, that's out…_

_Anyway, enough insanity for tonight! I'll see you guys in the next chapter! Thanks for reading and being patient with me with my late updates! I'll try to be more consistent but summer's coming up and that means less internet access for me! Oh, yeah, and I'm graduating. Hm, what now? _

_Whoops. Tangent._

_So please keep reading and review! Reviews bring more chapters and squish the M'arillians until they look like jelly! X3 If you can't tell, I don't like them much. _


	12. Diligo Est Vita

_alienphantom made an interesting guess about the titles in the prologue. But they were off by just a little bit! So close! Keep it in mind, people, I might reveal who those titles belong to later..._

_Ah, also, I apologize for the super late update. I'm out of school so I don't have the kind of internet access I did have and I also had to redo this entire chapter. Suckish.

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_

**Diligo Est Vita

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**

-Downtown 28th Street, Evergreen Card and Tabletop RPG Shop-

Peyton was pouting in the far corner of the local game shop, inwardly fuming. What Tom had said was wrong. Tom was wrong. Everything was all wrong. The boy buried his face in his hands with a groan of despair.

"Zero charisma, huh?" Said a voice and Peyton looked up to see a store clerk leaning against the nearby display shelf, looking the very picture of a Dungeons and Dragons nerd.

"Z-zero what?" Peyton stammered, slightly annoyed at the intrusion upon his private anger-management party.

"Charisma. Zero charisma." The young man pushed himself off the shelf and crossed his skinny arms over his chest with a slightly smile, "Charisma is your ability to talk to and influence other chara—people." He shrugged, "You look like you lost all your charisma points."

"More like I lost all my friends." Peyton grumbled, turning away with a snort.

"That's what I mean!" The store clerk squatted down, tilting his head to the side so he could look Peyton in the eye.

"Get outta my face." Peyton snapped at him.

"Whatever. Your funeral." The clerk shrugged again, stood, and walked away. Peyton watched him go and then let his gaze drift back to the floor between his sneakers.

He had been getting moodier lately. Even his roommate, Andy, had noticed. Peyton didn't know what to say to that. He'd always been a rather cheerful person, usually optimistic, if a bit eccentric, but now he was snapping at people and sulking in dark corners. Now that he thought about it, the colder the weather got, the darker his mood became; he was restless and agitated, a homesick feeling sweeping over him if he sat alone in his room too long.

He rocked his sneakers up and down on the carpet floor and then started when a familiar pair of black and red combat boots stepped into his vision. He followed the boots up a pair of baggy black cargos laced with chains and ropes of neon green and black, past a wide leather belt studded with silver symbols, over the large, black hooded sweater splashed with the words "Insanity Drives Me Crazy" in lime green, and to the flushed face of Kaz Kalinkas.

"Found you!" Kaz panted, glasses fogged slightly because of the temperature difference, "Hey! We need to talk!"

"I don't want to talk to anybody." Peyton grumbled back, seething. Kaz looked genuinely taken aback. It wasn't often that he was snapped at by his companions, especially ones as jovial as Peyton. Some of his enthusiasm seeped out of him and he seemed to deflate.

"Well, it's just that…I found Sarah in Dusklit Park and we talked a little bit and then ran all over town looking for you. And we still haven't found Tom." Peyton scowled, he could care less, "She's waiting outside because…because she's really upset about this whole thing. Only, you know she's never going to say that."

Peyton made a noise like he didn't want to hear it but Kaz crouched down, balancing on his toes, and draped his arms over his knees, chocolate eyes pleading behind his pink-tinted lenses.

"Cut it out, Kazzer. No puppy-dog eyes will change my mind." Peyton crossed his arms sullenly and turned his nose up, eyes closed.

"You're homesick too." Said Kaz and Peyton looked at him sharply, "Don't give me that look, I know you feel it. Sarah and I do to. It's almost our birthday and the closer it gets, the more and more disoriented I'm getting." He was completely serious in a way he hardly ever was.

Kaz was light. That was the only way to describe him. If he thought something was right, then he believed it was right with every ounce of his being. If he thought something was the truth, then he stuck with that truth no matter what. But he drifted his way through life like a ball of light, occasionally bumping into solid objects he had to navigate around but making it okay. He was charming in way that was different from Peyton; a dark candy charm that seemed stupid and pathetic at first glance but, upon further inspection, was revealed to be a mystery so complex that it would take a very long time to unravel it.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…" Peyton waved his hand through the air, "I know. I just…thought if I ignored it, it would go away." He looked at Kaz, hoping for an answer, but the other boy just lifted his shoulders and let them drop again.

"We should go look for Tom," Kaz said, straightening up and holding out his hand, "You know how he gets when he's angry." Tom would walk down the street forever unless someone or something stopped him.

"Fine. Okay. Whatever." Peyton was discontent with having to face Tom but he wasn't willing to let his former friend wander around in the cold all day and night. So he stood and followed Kaz out the door, ignoring the cheeky grin from the store clerk as he went.

Sarah was waiting outside, leaning against the store window. When she saw the two boys exit, she stepped away. Her jade eyes met Peyton's emerald ones. Kaz looked between Peyton and Sarah, brown eyes glittering. The tension was so heavy it was crushing his chest. He could almost smell the uncertainty and hurt and guilt, all mingling together into a smell like a frozen wasteland. Or maybe that was just the weather.

"I'm sorry." They both said at the same time. Then they blinked at each other and made to say something again but then stopped, "You go." They were talking at the same time again, "No, you go."

"You're both sorry and that's the end of it." Kaz said, stepping between them, "No." He held up a hand when Sarah tried to say something, "We speaketh of it no moreth!" Sarah rolled her eyes at the "eth" comments.

"Kazzy's right, Sarah. We gotta put the behind in our pasts, ya' know what I'm sayin'!" He winked and the other two laughed, "'Sides, we should go find Major T before he wanders off into Canada!"

"I doubt he'll make it to Canada." Kaz muttered, shivering as he pulled his hood over his spikes, "Is it just me or is it getting even _colder_ out here!?"

"Oh, come on, Kaz, it's not _that_ cold." Sarah said as they headed off down the sidewalk together.

"Well, it's obviously cold enough to snow!" Peyton grinned, pointing at the gray clouds overhead. Little fluffs of white were drifting down in slow, lazy spirals. Kaz shivered and grumbled something, burying his face back into his hood so that only a puff of white fog issued from its depths. He was anti-cold.

The three of them wandered through the town, talking and laughing as though nothing had happened, and keeping an eye out for a certain black haired boy with brilliant blue eyes. Several people had seen him furiously stomping his way down the sidewalk and were kind enough to point the trio in the right direction.

They were walking down State Street, on the edges of the Public side of town, discussing whether they should file a Missing Persons Report (jokingly), when Kaz's cell phone rang in a jarring tune that neither Peyton nor Sarah recognized.

Kaz frowned and pulled out his mobile, raising an eyebrow at the number on the screen. Then he flipped it open and put it to his ear, "Hello?" Peyton and Sarah watched him listen to whoever was on the other end, "Oh, hey. Wait, how'd you get this num—of course, she did." Another pause and Kaz's eye widened, "Seriously!? Yeah, okay! Yeah, we'll be right over there! Yeah, sure! Thanks a ton, Jo-Jo!" And he hung up.

"Who was that?" Sarah asked as Kaz stowed his cell phone back in his pocket.

"Joseph. Jo-Jo. Mercy's Public friend. Tom's with him, let's go." And he took off, moving quicker than a walk but not quite a run.

"Why are you going so fast?" Peyton called after him, jogging to keep stride.

"'Cause Tom's sick."

-Rowan Drive -

Tom hadn't even realized he was on the Public side of town until he glanced up saw a street sign he didn't recognize. He'd only been over on the Public side a couple of times but not quite frequently enough to know where he was going. So now he was lost, angry, and the weather was getting colder and colder. I had even started snowing.

To make matters worse, he wasn't feeling that well. He hadn't been feeling very well since he'd been sick in the kitchen that morning but he had too much pride to tell Kaz that. Besides, he was angry at Peyton and Sarah for playing him for the fool. And Kaz…well, he was angry at Kaz for not taking sides.

The ground tilted under his feet as he turned a corner. Tom put a hand to his head, blinking, trying to clear his thoughts. He felt like crap, probably because the weather was changing. He should have stayed at the Academy and gotten some rest. He forced himself to walk a few more paces before everything became a blur of gray and white.

He stumbled to the side and, feeling slightly guilty, hurled into someone's lawn.

_**You are not the one…**_

He felt his knees hit pavement but wasn't seeing the neat little house on the roadside anymore. His eyes saw blood and war and hatred and fear and destruction.

_**Where is the Catalyst?**_

Someone was shouting, hands gripped him, but he couldn't focus. The world was a blur of visions and reality. He felt hollow and sick.

_**You are not the one…**_

_**Where is the Ker Berethrou?**_

-Rowan Drive, The Goswillow Home-

Kaz ran the last few streets to Jo-Jo's house and slammed a fist on the door, panting for breath. Mrs. Goswillow answered and smiled slightly when she saw who it was, "Hello, Kaz. Please, come in, and bring your friends."

"Where's Tom?" Kaz asked immediately as Sarah and Peyton set their coats aside and he shrugged off his hooded sweater. He was wearing a plain, dark gray, long sleeved shirt underneath it.

"In the living room," Mrs. Goswillow pointed, "He doesn't seem to be doing very well. We were just going to take him to the doctors."

Sarah and Peyton followed Kaz into the living room and all three of them gasped. Tom was lying on his back on the couch, looking pale as the snow building up outside, a heavy blanket draped over him. Sweat was dripping down his forehead and his eyes were blazing with fever. Jo-Jo sat next to him on a footrest. He looked up when the trio walked in.

"Hey, Kaz." He seemed to have lost some of the upbeat aurora that made him so friendly, "Your pal here got sick in front of our house so we took him inside. I recognized him from some of the pictures on Mercy's facebook. I got your cell number from her."

"Tom?" Kaz walked over to his best friend, "Hey, Tom, you okay?"

Tom looked at him and made a grumbling noise, "Guess I should have listened to you."

"When have you _ever_ listened to me?" Kaz shot back, smiling.

"We should…get back to the Academy." Tom made an attempt to get up but Sarah ran over and pressed her hands on his shoulders, pushing him back down onto the cushions.

"You're not walking back to the Academy like this!" She said solidly, "We'll just, I don't know, call a cab or something."

"A town this size doesn't have cabs, Sarah." Peyton muttered and she ignored him.

"I'll drive you," Jo-Jo said, "But I really think he should see a doctor before you take him back to the Academy."

"Hey!" Tom snapped weakly, "Don't I get a say in this?" And he tried to get up again.

This time, Sarah, Peyton, and Kaz all pushed him down. But as soon as Kaz touched his friend, he went flying backwards with a wild yell and slammed into the floor in the middle of the living room, looking winded. For a second, there was a presence in the room like a great storm cloud of power but it vanished quickly and later, everyone would deny it or say they imagined it.

Kaz, meanwhile, was flat on his back, eyes wide and staring at the ceiling. Jo-Jo, Sarah, and Peyton all leaned over him.

"Kaz? You okay?" There was no response to Peyton's questioning, "Kazzer? Hey! Come on, dude."

"What happened? Is he in shock?" Sarah waved a hand in front of the Goth's face but got no response.

"It's like…I dunno…he's possessed or something!" Jo-Jo said but no one said anything to this. Tom, meanwhile, was staring stupidly across the room at the form of his best friend. One second, he'd felt like he was going to be sick all over the place and the next it was as though nothing had happened.

He stood up and ran a hand through his black hair. What the heck had just happened?

-????-

_**Ice cold fire licked his semi-corporeal form, making him flinch and draw into himself. He had no idea where he was or what was going on. **_

"_**There you are." It was a thousand voices all at the same time and they made his head ache, "I have been looking for you, Catalyst." **_

"_**That's not my name." He said and the cold fire roared above his head, bent down, and crashed back upon him like a wave of water. And the fire did become water, swallowing him and tossing him left and right. He struggled, trying to find a surface, trying to breath.**_

"_**Ah, but it is. You are the Ker Berethrou, The Demon of the Pit, the Sacred Catalyst of the Goddess. And you are the one…" He wished the voices would stop talking to him. It was hard enough to concentrate on finding air as it was. He struggled, floundering, desperately trying to swim upwards as gravity yanked him down, down, down into those foreboding, dark depths. **_

"_**I can't go there!" Bubbles flew from his mouth as he said the words, "I can't go there!"**_

"_**You have to." Said the voices and then there was a pause, "But what's this? The little dog does not remember who he is…" They were mocking him. He chocked, swallowing water, coughing, weakly struggling from the surface that he could not see. Then the voices said,**_

"_**We will come for you, Ker Berethrou, and we will take you. And we will make you as you should be. Then the world will bend before us. And we will rule."**_

_**His vision was fading, spinning out of control. He wasn't trying to swim anymore, too weak to try.**_

"_**And then everything will be made new."**_

_**Blackness.**_

-Rowan Drive, The Goswillow Home-

Kaz suddenly gasped, his chocolate eyes focusing once again, and everyone jumped in surprise. He sat up, a hand to his head, and squeezed his eyes shut, rubbing his fingers over his temple as though he was trying to drive off a headache. It seemed he'd all but forgotten his friends.

"Kaz?" Tom leaned past everyone, kneeling down to see if his friend was alright, "Hey, Kaz, what's wrong? What…happened just now?"

"I…I dunno…" Kaz kept his eyes closed, fingertips running in repeating circles over his forehead. He sounded scared, "I was drowning…there was nothing but water…voices…"

"What's he saying?" Jo-Jo asked for Kaz was talking in such a low whisper that only Tom could hear him.

"Kaz, snap out of it, man." Tom shook his friend's shoulder, ignoring Jo-Jo's question. Kaz shook his head, blinking several times, and looked at Tom. Then he opened his mouth and said,

"Hey, you'd better not throw up on me."

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, The Front Gate, 4: 57-

Nobody could explain what had happened in the Goswillow house.

The four teenagers had declined Jo-Jo's offer to drive them back to the Academy but rather walked back, arriving just before curfew with a lot on their minds. Tom had been sick and then miraculously gotten better and Kaz had been blown across the room by _something_.

But there was an unspoken agreement among them not to talk about it. There was a presence about what had happened; something dark and dangerous that made them feel as though they should not discuss what had transpired. So they kept quiet as the gate closed behind them and they started for the dorms.

"Kaz," They all looked around to see Mercy standing under a light post with her arms crossed over her chest. The snow swirled around her, falling heavier as evening wore on. There was no expression on her face but Kaz broke away from the other three warily, sensing trouble, "I need to talk to you."

Kaz stood just outside the circle of light, tense and shivering in the cold air. It shouldn't have this cold at the beginning of November, "H-hey Mercy, what's up." His breath fogged in front of him and he rubbed his hands across his face to regain feeling. His fingers were numb already.

"What were you doing with Sarah earlier today?" It was like someone had dropped a bomb. Peyton, Tom, and Sarah scattered, muttering excuses, and vanished into the oncoming darkness.

Kaz, meanwhile, flushed and not just because of the chill, "W-well, see, we were going t-to hang out at the Queen of Hearts today, 'm-member?" Mercy gave a short nod and Kaz continued, words stuttered because his teeth had started chattering, "T-Tom and P-Peyton got into a f-fight and Sarah got upset and r-ran off. So I w-went to find h-her and then we went t-t-to go find Tom and Peyton." It sounded lame but it was the truth and Kaz was too cold to care. He wrapped his arms around himself, shuddering.

"And it took you all day to find them?" Mercy didn't seem at all fazed by the chilly air. In fact, her eyes were like ice chips. Kaz felt stupid when he realized that Mercy was angry with him.

"Look, M-Mercy, Tom was sick and h-he shouldn't have been out and about. H-he got s-sick in front of Jo-Jo's a-and—." He shivered violently as a burst of cold wind bit into his flesh.

"Oh, that's why he needed your number…" Mercy's expression fell, "Sorry, Kaz, I just…I guess I jumped to conclusions."

"I-i-it's f-fine." Kaz shook his head, desperate to get out of the cold, "L-l-look, if you w-want to t-t-talk about it m-more can we do it t-t-tomorrow? I'm g-g-onna f-f-f-freeze to death out h-here!"

"It's not _that_ cold." Mercy said, rolling her eyes. But then she smiled, "Alright, see you tomorrow, Kaz. G'night!" And she ran off into the dark.

Kaz laughed nervously, every inch of him quivering with the effort to keep himself warm. He pulled his hood low over his face, crossed his arms, ducked his head against the wind, and started towards the dorms again. The wind howled, first going one way and then the other. An early winter storm.

White churned blindingly in all directions, the lampposts were barely a help at all, and it was all Kaz could do to keep his feet on the sidewalk. He couldn't even feel his feet let alone see them through the smears of snow across his glasses. He shuddered, feeling impossibly alone.

"_**Catalyst…"**_

His head was hurting again and the wind was playing tricks on him. He could almost hear voices. Maybe it was just because his ears were so numb from cold. He kept moving, feeling like he was getting nowhere.

"_**We've been looking for you…"**_

Kaz curled over himself, his whimpers lost in the howling wind. His headache was getting worse and the cold was pulling him in ever direction, tearing him into pieces. Icy fingers wrapped around his hood and yanked it back, exposing his face to the elements. He fumbled with numb fingers, trying to pull it back up.

"_**Come home to us…"**_

He looked around. Nothing but darkness. Suddenly terrified, he started running. A great wind buffeted him and he stumbled back. What the heck was going on!?

"Hey!" Kaz could barely hear himself over the storm, "Hey! Tom! Peyton!? Sarah! Anybody! A little help, please! Heeeeyyy!"

"_**Catalyst!"**_

Kaz yelled as a sharp pain lanced through his head. He hadn't realized he'd fallen over until he felt the cold dig into the bleeding cut on his lip. He scrambled over the concrete sidewalk until he found the blessed iron bars of the dormitories. He ran as fast as he could, ducked through the front door, and slammed it shut behind him, panting. The storm roared in fury outside, whistling angrily at its lost prey.

Pins and needles settled into Kaz's skin as warmth seeped into him. His glasses fogged, he felt for the stairwell and shakily climbed it, feeling drained and exhausted. At least his headache was gone. He unlocked the door to his and Tom's room and stepped inside. Tom was sitting in front of the television, watching the emergency news coverage of the storm. His blue eyes flickered over to Kaz when he heard the door shut.

"Hey, what kept you?" He eyed Kaz's split lip, "Mercy punch you out for something?"

"I tripped." Kaz pulled his sweater over his head, still shivering.

"And that made you take a half and hour to get back here?"

"No, I…" He paused, thinking about the voice he thought he'd heard, thinking about all the times Tom had teased him about his visions and dreams, thinking about the homesickness that was sinking into all of them, "I got caught in the storm."

And he went into his room, locking the door behind him.

* * *

_Translations: Diligo Est Vita – Love is Life_

_Hopefully that's enough for now. Aheh…I tried my best to make this chapter worth the wait and I hope I lived up to your expectations. Everyone's begging me to let the four heirs go home soon. I hope I can get them home before the fall season starts…_

_Anyway, you're probably all sitting in front of your computers now going, "What the heck was that!? What is going on!? Oh my gosh!" And stuff like that. Weeelllll…I'm not going to tell you. X3 You'll just have to wait and see. Mwahahahahahahaha!_

_Thank you so much for waiting for this update, internet access is hard for me to get to right now and I have a lot of work I have to do around the house nowadays. (sighs) Not to mention my portfolio for college, finding an f-ing job in this f-ing economy, and trying not to randomly run into walls. It means a lot that you guys are sticking around to wait for updates and leaving me those awesome, awesome reviews! Keep 'em comin'! Reviews make more chapters and get Kazzy a good psychiatrist! ('Cause Dr. Tanner was totally nothing but sarcasm.)_


	13. Infactus Per Suus

_Here's a story for you: I went to Meijer and got pissed because they didn't have any Chaotic decks there. So I bought a _Turn of the Tide_ pack instead, got in the car and opened it up. I pull the cards out and go "what the frick is this thing!?" They put a piece of cardboard in there with a security strip on it. Yeah, because apparently trading cards are sooooo high on the list of things people steal (sarcasm). _

_Oh yeah, when I was done looking through the cards, I turned to my mom and said, "I demand a refund! I got an OverWorlder!" She just ignored me.

* * *

_

**Infactus Per Suus

* * *

**

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Late December, Two Days Until 18th Birthday-

The snow had been piling up all over campus and making it extremely difficult for students to get to their classes. Eventually, classes got canceled all together because a crew had to be called in and clear up what the ground keepers could not.

The students were ecstatic, many of them heading straight for Dusklit Park to join the giant snowball fight that was brewing. Well, almost all of the students. A particular four were near absolute misery, finding comfort in their own company rather than in groups. It was a depressing sight; while the rest of the Academy was getting excited about the upcoming Christmas holiday, the four adopted siblings were becoming more and more moody.

So, the day off was not met with an enthusiasm that equaled that of the other students. Tom sulked in his room, sinking into an angry silence on the couch and venting his withheld aggression by chopping enemies to pieces on _God of War II_.

Sarah made some half-hearted attempts at shooting hoops in the gym with some other girls who didn't fancy a snowball fight. But she eventually lost interest and went to sit in the school library, hiding in a corner with a book in her hands and her headphones in.

Peyton tried to keep up his optimistic attitude, not as eager to succumb to the nostalgic depression as the others were. He hung out with his roommate, Andy, watching M-rated movies and making a mess in the kitchen with popcorn and frozen pizzas. But it was plastered happiness, for the most part. Even Andy could tell that much.

Where Kaz had run off to was anyone's guess. He'd woken up earlier than usual, even for him, and vanished into town. Tom worried about him a little; his friend had become silent for the most part, keeping to himself and only talking if it was necessary. But Kaz could take care of himself.

In fact, the Goth boy was hiding out at the Queen of Hearts again, away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the world. A steaming mug of hot chocolate sat in front of him at the small, two person table he'd claimed in the corner, his sketchpad resting on his knees and pencil in hand. He was sketching away with a distant, blank expression, earbuds plugging his ears and blocking out the jolly Christmas music, alone in his artistic world.

So of course, he was oblivious to Mercy when she walked through the front door, shook snow from her mahogany hair, glanced around, and walked over to sit in the chair across from him. She stared at him for a long time but he was out of it. She reached over and tapped the top of his sketchbook. He jumped and looked up, yanking out one of his headphones.

"Oh, hey Mercy. What're you doing here?"

"Looking for you," She said, shrugging off her coat to hang it over the back of the chair, "I wanted to know if you were feeling okay."

"Yeah," Kaz said distractedly, turning his gaze back to his drawing, "I'm fine." He was wearing a baggy turtleneck decorated on the front with a kimono-wearing skeleton, a fingerless black glove on his left hand, three black and red rings on his right hand, tight black jeans with random patches of skulls and knives, and his traditional combat boots. A dark green, hooded winter jacket was slung carelessly over the back of his chair.

"Don't give me that "I'm fine" bull crap, Kaz." Mercy said, frowning at him, "You've been avoiding me for the past week. _Something_ is wrong."

Kaz glanced at her through his glasses. She noticed he had pierced his ears with a silver band in one and a twisting mass of silver and red gems in the other. It looked very odd and Mercy wondered if he did it on purpose.

"Nothing's wrong, Mercy, I swear." He reached out and took a drink of his coco, "I just don't like the cold."

"How does not being okay with the weather give you an excuse to avoid me?"

"I…" He fiddled with his pencil, the lead making soft scratching noises as it traveled across the paper.

"Quit drawing for once and look at me!" She didn't mean to snap but it came out like that and Kaz stuck his pencil behind his ear quickly, training his chocolate eyes on her. They didn't sparkle like they used to, "Kaz, what's eating you. I'm just…I told you that you could talk to me about anything and I…I mean that, Kaz."

He kept his eyes on her but his fingers traveled up the side of his neck, almost like they had a mind of their own, toyed with the neckline of his turtleneck, his index finger itched his jaw line, traced their way over the twisty earring, and curled around the pencil behind his ear. It was an unconscious movement; he was nervous and upset.

"Alright," Mercy stood up, grabbing her coat as she did so, "If you don't want to talk, fine. I'm going back to campu—."

"Mercy, don't go." It was desperate and it made her stop and look around at him. He had a tragic and pathetic expression on his face that only Kaz could have. She rolled her eyes dramatically and sat back down, "I'm sorry I was avoiding you, I didn't do it…intentionally. I've had a lot on my mind lately."

"Like what?" Mercy put her chin in her hand, resting her elbow on the table.

"School," Kaz shrugged vaguely, "Klay being a jerk to me more than ever. And then the weather, I really, really, hate the cold. And…I dunno, I haven't been feeling very well lately."

"Like, sick?"

"I dunno." Kaz repeated, pencil in his hand, raising an eyebrow as he sketched away, "I get random headaches, I feel sick for a few seconds and then it goes away, nostalgia, hearing voi—." He stopped himself, going pale. Mercy's eyes narrowed at him, "Aheh," He grinned feebly and looked quickly back at his drawing.

"Does that help?" She asked after a moment of silence.

"Does what help?" He flipped the pencil over, erased a mistake, and went back to sketching.

"Drawing. Does drawing help you focus, or whatever?"

"I…guess so." He paused, tilting his head to look at his picture, "I draw what I see in my visions—dreams!" He quickly corrected himself, "Or what I feel."

"Can I see?" He hefted the sketchpad up and flipped it around to show her. She leaned forward to get a better view and the whistled with awe, sitting back in her chair, "You're really amazing, Kaz, you know that?"

"Thanks…" He pulled the sketchbook back towards him, looking at the drawing there with a semi-satisfied smile.

"What is it?"

"I actually don't know…" He was frowning at it, pencil hand supporting his chin while the other one traced the lines he'd drawn with light fingertips, "He's important…that's all I know."

Mercy didn't see how a gargoyle thing with horns was important but she was too nice to say anything to Kaz. Besides, he was acting really strangely. And, unless she'd heard him wrong, he said he'd been hearing voices. She knew from her friends that Tom, Sarah, and Peyton had been moody too but she hadn't heard anything about them hearing voices. Maybe Valerie was right and it was time to—.

"_I'm faking my own suiciiiiiiddeee because I know you love me, you just haven't realized. Faking my own suiciiiiidddeee! They'll hold a double funeral because a part of you will die along with me."_ Kaz fumbled in his jeans pocket for his cell phone, pencil in his mouth. He pulled it and put it to his ear, spitting his pencil into his free hand as he did so.

"Hey Tom." He listened for a second or two, "No, I'm at the Queen of Hearts. Why? …… No. …Yeah, I did, but— ………It is not! ……No it's not! You take that back, Tom Majors!" Kaz scowled at the phone, "Fine, fine… Yeah. ……No, no, it's okay. Really. ………Well, if—yeah, that would be a good idea. But let me get over there first. …… 'K. See you in a few. Bye." He hung up and stowed the phone away.

"What was that about?" Mercy asked as Kaz flipped his sketchbook closed and stowed his pencil and MP3 player away in his back pocket.

"Tom, he's complaining because I didn't leave him a lunch." Kaz hooked his sketchbook under his arm as he grabbed his coat off the chair, "It's about time I got back anyway; homework and all that." He pulled his coat on and dropped some money on the table, draining the last of the coco, "Wanna walk back with me?"

-Somewhere…-

All was lost.

Hope had fallen with their once glorious cities.

Everywhere they turned, more destruction came.

And _them_…

He pressed a hand over his eyes, heart aching. What was left to fight for? His home, doomed. His family, gone. His life, worthless.

"_How far the mighty have fallen!"_ One of them had sneered before he'd struck it down.

And indeed, he and the rest of his comrades had fallen very far.

Very, very far…

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Mercy and Valerie's Room-

Valerie leaned against the window in the living room, watching Kaz and Mercy lounge in front of the iron fence, talking. Well, Mercy was talking (rather animatedly, at that) and Kaz was just kind of nodding and muttering in response. Or at least, that's how it looked to her. That freaky Goth even had his stupid sketchbook under his arm; he carried the darn thing everywhere, like a drug or something he did to get his fix.

Valerie snorted, turning away from the window to sit on the couch. There were plenty of better guys out there for Mercy and here she was, dating a Goth. A freaky Goth with freaky siblings. Valerie didn't like any of them; even the campus flirt, Tom Majors. There was something weird about all of them. Something…off.

Valerie stood up again and snuck back to the window. Kaz was shivering in the snow and Mercy was poking his arm as though saying he was being stupid about the weather. But there was something in the way she was moving that was putting Valerie off. Oh, that was it.

Valerie smiled to herself, heading back into her own room and shutting the door behind her. She pretended not to hear when Mercy came in, preferring to flip idly through her fashion magazines as though she had not a care in the world.

And why should she?

The flame of love had blown out.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room-

Kaz had been in the room a half hour, making lunch for Tom and then shutting himself in his own room. The lights were off, plunging the space into darkness save for the dull, eerie glow of the neon green lava lamp on his desk. It cast odd shadows across his face, bringing some features into sharp focus and casting others into infinite shadow.

His dark eyes glittered, reflecting the brilliant light in an almost unnatural way as they stared, unseeing, at the ceiling.

His head was hurting again but he hardly noticed, his thoughts elsewhere.

"_**Get up, Catalyst, you have a job to do."**_ Those voices hurt; the harsh ones, hoarse from years of screaming, raking together like rusty metal on rusty metal, loud and blaring as gunfire, _**"Come, Ker Berethrou, come…"**_

"_**Hush," **_That voice, though, that was a voice he didn't mind. But it hardly ever came. After the scream of the other voices, it sounded like a chorus of angels; not quite one voice but not exactly more than one, harmonized, beautiful, as peaceful and sweet as the ringing of tiny silver bells, _**"Still yourselves, he is not ready."**_

"_**Catalyst…"**_

"_**Be silent…"**_

"_**Ker Berethrou…"**_

"_**He does not remember…"**_

"_**Come to us…"**_

"_**He is not ready…"**_

"Shut up…" Kaz grumbled, closing his eyes and kneading his forehead with the heels of his hands, "Just…just, shut up!" The clamor of voices stopped for a few moments and then started up again; the angels and demons fighting inside his head flooding him with an agonizing fear.

_I'm going crazy…!_ He thought, opening his eyes again to stare at the ceiling, to confirm it was real, to confirm that he wasn't having a vision, _I'm losing my mind! I'm hearing voices! What's _wrong_ with me!?_

"_**Fear? Why is there fear? Do you fear us?"**_ The demons harsh voices seemed mocking, always mocking. Then they suddenly became distant, as if dropped from a cliff.

"_**He is afraid because of our presence."**_ The angels sounded far away too, _**"Leave him. He is not yet ready…"**_

And then they were gone.

Kaz groaned, rolling onto his side and curling his arms over his face. The bridge of his glasses dug into his nose. He ignored it, the pain in his skull, thudding like a sludge hammer, was far worse.

"Why me…?" He moaned, voice shaking, "Why does it have to be me?" He closed his eyes and hot tears leaked out, trickling down his cheeks. Had he seen them, they would have shimmered like heated metal in the ghostlike light cast by his lava lamp. This sizzled slightly as they touched the bed sheets, leaving trails of smoke to dissipate into the air.

But Kaz noticed none of this. He was caught up in his emotional rollercoaster, crying and digging his fingers into his spiky hair as though it would keep the voices at bay.

He fell asleep like that, curled into a little ball, still fully clothed, tears crusted on his cheeks, and glasses askew. His soft breathing filled the room, whispering words of a language forgotten by time.

Heat shimmered in the air around him. A metallic scent of hot metal filled the room. Power hovered thickly in the air, a veritable smog of unseen energy. And all of it leaking from the seventeen year old snuggled on his bed.

The lava lamp on his desk flickered weakly a couple of time and then went out with a pop.

The feeling of overwhelming power vanished.

Darkness ruled.

Kaz slept, oblivious to it all.

-???-

"_**Stop interfering! I can reach him without you!"**_

"_**You are stirring his **_**Regius Cruor**_**. You are treading upon dangerous territory."**_

"_**His power has been locked away for too long! It will break him…"**_

"_**What happens to him is—."**_

"_**Not your concern, **_**Carmen Of Angelus**_**! You are not supposed to be in contact with him!"**_

"_**And what of his companion? The **_**trova procer**_**? Did you not overwhelm him when you touched his mind instead of Ker Berethrou's?"**_

"_**Silence! You are not to contact him again! When their **_**Regius Cruor**_** awakens…we will be there to take them…"**_

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room, 9: 38 am-

When Kaz woke up the next morning, he panicked because his alarm hadn't gone off in time to wake him up for school. That was until Tom casually told him over a bowl of cereal that classes were cancelled again and students were to stay indoors unless it was absolutely necessary. Kaz made a face at him and stomped into his bedroom again to change his clothes.

As he fought to get into his foot into a pair of pants, his cell phone beeped at him in an irritated sort of way. He yanked his arms through an overly large jacket and picked up the device. _One Unheard Message. Sent yesterday, at 10:30 pm._ the screen said. With a shrug the boy flipped the phone open and listened,

"_Hey Kaz, it's Mercy. Um…I know it's really late but I've been thinking about something since that talk we had in the Queen of Hearts and…uh…I…I really need to talk to you again. So, like, if we could meet somewhere tomorrow…? Um, well, 'gnight…"_

Kaz tilted his head to the side, frowning at the phone. Mercy had sounded…strange. Unfortunately, there'd be no going out to meet her anywhere because of the lockdown. Kaz sighed and sat down on his bed. Was it too early in the morning to call her? He glanced at his bedside clock. 9:46. It was almost ten; it should be okay.

His finger hovered over the number 9; Mercy's speed dial number. Then he jumped when Tom knocked on his door,

"I'm going to Peyton's room, Kaz, wanna come?"

"Uh…no thanks."

"'K, whatever." Footsteps, the front door opening and then closing again, and then silence. Kaz looked back at the phone in his hands. He could wait until after lunch, just to be sure he wasn't waking her up.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Mercy and Valerie's room, 12: 02 am-

Mercy and Valerie were watching television and swapping chatter during the commercials when it happened.

Mercy's cell phone rang.

She winced at the familiar ring tone but pretended to ignore it. Valerie eyed her, then looked over her shoulder at her friend's room, and then back at her roommate.

"Are you going to get that?" She asked in an almost indolent fashion, resting her arms on the back of the couch and looking for all the world like a diva.

No getting out of it now. Mercy stood up and took the longest time possible getting to her room. But she still got there too fast. She gingerly lifted up the cell phone, like it would explode if she held it wrong, glanced at Valerie, and answered it,

"H-hello?"

"_Hey Mercy!"_

"Kaz!" Mercy saw Valerie look around over the couch again and scowled, kicking the door shut so her companion couldn't see what she was up to.

"_Hi! You said you wanted to talk but, well, ya' know, we can't exactly leave…"_ There was a smile in his voice and Mercy felt terrible, _"So, what's up?"_

"Um, listen, Kaz, maybe…I really didn't want to do this over the phone…but I…" She paused for a second. It would be better to do it now and get it over with, "Kaz, I'm…I think we should stop going out."

"_Huh?"_ There was a tone in his voice that suggested shock.

Mercy took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "I'm breaking up with you."

"_I…what? Wait, where did this come from!? Why are you—WHY!?"_

Mercy flinched as his voice cracked, "It's just, you told me yourself you're going through a tough time and you don't need me hanging around to—."

"_So you decided to make it worse!?"_

"No! You've been acting really weird, Kaz! All this depression and moodiness! I'd expect that from someone else but not from you!"

"_You make it sound like I murdered someone! How is any of this justifying breaking up with me!?"_

"Get over yourself!" She screamed into the phone, suddenly furious with the way he was acting, "People date and break up all the time! You don't have to act like it's the end of the world, Kaz!"

"_You—you just spontaneously decided this yesterday!? After a stupid conversation!?"_

"No! I've been thinking about it since you started acting like an Emo! For almost a month! I thought maybe you'd snap out of it but you didn't! You just got worse!"

"_What am I now, diseased!?"_

"You were a _phase_, Kaz! I liked you and now I don't! End of story!"

There was silence for a few seconds and then a voice broken by tears and anger said,

"_Thanks for the birthday present."_

A dial tone blazed in her ear.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room, 12: 04-

"_No! I've been thinking about it since you started acting like an Emo!"_ Mercy's voice was hot and angry and it sliced through Kaz as easily as a blade, _"For a month! I thought maybe you'd snap you of it but you didn't! You just got worse!"_

"What am I now, diseased!?" He wasn't thinking, his brain struggling to keep up with his mouth as it spewed words fueled by anger and hurt. How could she do this!? Just…just out of the blue like this!? It was agonizing!

"_You were a _phase_, Kaz!"_ He felt like someone had shot him with a bullet made of ice, _"I liked you and now I don't! End of story!"_

He sat on the edge of his bed for a moment, frozen, heart broken, trying to find something to say that would make this all better again. Suddenly, furious and aching, he spat in a shaky voice,

"Thanks for the birthday present."

He shut the phone with a snap and threw it across the room with a wild scream. It hit the wall and shattered into more pieces than he could count.

Then, broken into a million shards, he buried his face in his hands and sobbed his sorry heart out.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room, 4: 18pm-

Tom opened the door to room he and Kaz shared, shut it behind him, and froze as he took a step forward. For a second, he wondered if he'd accidentally walked outside. Then he looked down and lifted his foot. Bent into the carpet was a piece of sketch paper. Tom picked it up and sighed as his blue eyes flickered over it. A half finished doodled of a dragon diving off a cliff, its wings ragged and torn so it could no longer fly. The boy dropped the paper back on the floor, shaking his head with a half smile as he saw page after page of sketch paper scattered all over the floor.

"Kaz!" He shouted, tossing the movie he'd borrowed from Peyton and Andy on the couch and heading across the room to his friend's bedroom, "Kaz!" He opened the door, "Ah…"

Kaz's room was so filled with paper that you couldn't see the floor (not that you could see much of it anyway). The artist himself was hunched up on his bed, scribbling furiously on his sketch pad. The way he was sitting, his knees were drawn up and his sketchbook propped there so Tom couldn't see much of him. Kaz suddenly gave a shout of frustration, ripped the page out, threw it on the floor, and started fresh again.

"Kaz, you're stress sketching." Tom kicked up a flurry of pencil stained papers, "What's wrong?" Kaz slammed the sketchbook and pencil onto his bed and Tom saw the tears streaking his friend's cheeks.

"Mercy broke up with me!"

* * *

_Translations: Infactus Per Suus – Broken By Her, Regius Cruor –Royal Blood, Carmen of Angelus – Song of the Angels, Trova Procer – Wild Prince_

_And that's where we'll stop. 'Cause I'm a jerk. Hee, hee. _

_I think some people saw this coming. So be honest with me, how many of you knew this was going to happen? Come on, I'm interested! How many of you honestly knew Kaz and Mercy were going to break up? _

_Poor Kazzy, he gets a girl and she dumps him because he's being depressed. It's okay Cerbie! I still love you! Oh, wait, he doesn't remember he's Cerberus. Opps. Heh…_

_Aaaannnnyyyywaaayyyy, lots of Latin in this one. And voices. Hm, hm, some people have made some excellent guesses as to what the Catalyst is and Ker Berethrou and who the voices are. This is so entertaining. (grins)_

_Thanks so much for reading and waiting for updates! And for the reviews! Reviews kill Writer's Block (insert evil laugh here) so I can write more chapters! Yeeaaaaahhhhh! _


	14. Effrego Cuspis

_I don't have anything interesting to say here…except that some more people might get mad at me for the end of this (longer than usual) chapter.

* * *

_

**Effrego Cuspis

* * *

**

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Tom and Kaz's Room-

"Mercy broke up with me!" Faust's fuzzy purple head was poking out from underneath his arm, looking as mournful as his owner with his X-d out eyes.

"Kaz…oh, dude…" Tom didn't know what to say. He could only stand in the doorway with an expression halfway between embarrassment and distress. He felt suddenly useless as Kaz stared at him with liquid chocolate eyes that brimmed with tears; he wasn't one for bedside comfort-talk, he could barely write a greeting card.

Finally, he pulled himself together and said in a low voice, "Kaz, it'll be okay. Just…don't think about it. It'll be—."

"Oh, yeah, _you_ can say that!" Kaz shouted, swinging himself off his bed and sending a flurry of papers into the air as his feet thudded onto the floor, "You've had plenty of on-and-off girls! Every other week there's a new one hanging off you!"

"Hey!" Tom flushed red, stung by the insult.

"Don't you have any idea what this feels like to _me_!?" Kaz kept ranting as though Tom hadn't said anything, "Mercy was the _only_ girl who ever looked twice at me! And now she dumped me because…because…" He trailed off and squeezed his eyes shut, hunching his shaking shoulders as though warding off something painful, "I can't do anything right…"

"Kaz…?" Tom ventured but his best friend shook his head.

"I…I wanna be alone…" Kaz brushed past him, rubbing salty tears from his eyes as he went. The front door to the room shut softly and Tom was left alone in his friend's messy bedroom. He cast a blue-eyed gaze around at it, trying to find something to distract himself. His wandering eyes found a pair of pink-tinted glasses lying forgotten on the desk. Tom's brow furrowed.

Kaz wasn't wearing his glasses.

Then how was it possible for him to act like he was?

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Boy's Bathrooms-

Kaz leaned over the white marble sink, staring at his ragged looking reflection in the mirror. He looked like crap. Tears stained his cheeks, his eyes were dull, and his spiky hair was disheveled and the points drooping. He rubbed a hand over his face, turned the water on, and scooped up a handful of water, splashing it across his face.

"Trying to drown yourself in the sink now?" Someone said and Kaz looked around, rubbing the water from his eyes as he did. Aras was leaning against a nearby sink with his hands in the pockets of his worn out jeans.

"No." Kaz muttered in reply, pushing his sagging bangs out of his face and turning back to the running water in the sink.

"You just got dumped, didn't you?" Kaz flinched, "Sorry man, didn't mean to push salt in the wounds. Want some Elixir 5?" Aras held out the pack.

Kaz shook his head, "No thanks, I'll just…go watch a movie or something…" He pushed the sleeves of his sweater back down and granted Aras a somewhat shaky smile, "Thanks anyway."

"Sure, man, no problem." The older boy shrugged, "See ya' around."

"Yeah, see ya'." Kaz walked out of the restrooms with a heavy sigh, shivering as the cold bit into him. The bathrooms and showers were a little behind the main dormitory and Kaz was about halfway between the small space that separated the two buildings when he realized he wasn't wearing his glasses. He'd probably took them off in the bathroom and forgotten them in there. Shivering again, he turned around and headed back for the building he'd just left.

Funny thing was, he could see just fine.

-e _**D**_ w _**A**_ r _**D**_ i _**A**_ n _**L**_ e _**O**_ - d _**A**_ v _**I**_ s—???-

"_**Catalyst."**_

"What the—!?"

"_**No. You are not the one we seek."**_

"Who's there!? Who said that!?"

"_**But you have seen him."**_

"Wh-what's…happening…my…head hurts…!"

"_**You will be our bait."**_

"Stop it…stop it!"

"_**Bring us the Catalyst!"**_

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!"

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, just outside the Boy's Bathrooms-

Kaz froze, his hand resting on the doorknob to the bathrooms. He swore he'd just heard someone screaming.

"Aras?" His breath frosted in front of him, "Aras!" He threw the door open, took one step inside, and fell backwards into the cold snow behind him, a scream catching in his throat. Whites surrounded his brown irises as he fought for a breath that would not come to him, he shook both with cold and adrenaline fear, and yet he could not move. His mind reeled, rejecting what he saw.

And he fainted.

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, the Nurse's Office-

Tom had heard from Peyton who'd heard from Andy who'd heard from Nic who'd heard from Ron who'd heard from Ed who'd heard from Leo who'd heard from some-guy-named-Kurt-who-lived-on-the-first-floor:

Someone had been killed in the Boy's Bathroom and Kaz was in the Nurse's Office.

Tom and Peyton met Sarah in front of the iron fence and together they half ran, half stumbled their way through the bitter cold and knee-deep snow to the Nurse's Office. When they got inside, they were met with a flurry of activity. Several police officers were running back and forth and Principal Revil was nervously talking to a policewoman and her partner. A nurse hurried up to them, looking upset,

"You three shouldn't be in here. Go on, get back to your—."

"We want to see Kaz!" Sarah demanded sharply. Several of the police officers looked around at her and Tom swallowed a nervous lump in his throat, "He's our friend! We want to make sure he's okay."

One officer stepped up to them, "Stop making a nuisance of yourselves and go back to your dormitories. This is no place for children."

"Sergeant Briggs, leave them be." Commanded a female voice a policewoman stepped between Briggs and the three teenagers, "Go back to your post. I will handle these three." She made sure the Sergeant was out of hearing range and then turned back to the nervous trio, "I'm Officer Drima, Head of Investigations here in town. I need you to come with me."

Tom, Peyton, and Sarah all exchanged a look and followed her down a hall. As the din from the lobby faded, they could hear shouting coming from a room with a closed door at the end of the hallway. When Officer Drima pushed the door open, they saw what was happening.

Kaz was sitting on top of a bed, the sheets rumpled, with a heavy blanket draped over his shoulders and his wrists handcuffed together. Tears were streaking his face as he shook his head repeatedly, screaming as he did so,

"I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! I DIDN'T! I DIDN'T!"

"So you've said!" Snarled the officer standing over him, "But even my nine year old son could come up with a better excuse than that!"

"Victor McCarrin!" Drima shouted, "What do you think you're doing!?"

"Interrogating a suspect, ma'am." The officer glared at Kaz and the boy drew his knees up to his chin, burying his face there, shaking with grief.

"Vic," Drima's voice was icy, "How long have you been on this force?"

"Twelve years since yesterday, ma'am." Vic never took his eyes off Kaz.

"Then use your eyes! That bathroom was _painted_ in blood! There's nothing on this boy!" Drima pointed at the door, "Get out. Now. Report to Briggs, he'll station you somewhere else." Victor slid out the door like an eel and Drima slammed it behind him.

"Kaz?" Sarah touched his shoulder and the boy jerked upright, looking at her with shimmering eyes. They were colored a brilliant topaz that was almost gold instead of his usual dark chocolate brown, "Are…are you okay?"

Kaz was shaking terribly but he managed to nod once. Officer Drima sat in a nearby chair and leaned forward, resting her arms on her legs. Kaz automatically drew back. Sarah sat on the bed beside him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, pulling him into a comforting hug, Peyton sat on the end of the bed, and Tom stood sentry next to Sarah.

"I personally apologize for my subordinate." Drima said, "You should not have been treated like that." She pulled a set of keys from her waist and unlocked the handcuffs, stowing them away, "But I'm afraid I need to take you to the station for an official statement." Kaz shuddered but nodded, still to terrified to speak.

"Then we're coming too." Tom said hotly. When he got a questioning look from the policewoman he continued, "Kaz is our friend and our brother—even if we're not related by blood. We're sticking together. So there." And he crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly.

Drima's gaze danced from his tenacious frown, to Peyton's equally, near-infuriated one, to Sarah's stony faced expression of distrust, and then to Kaz's distraught features. She sighed and forced a small smile, "Alright, you can all come along too."

She stood and led them out the door. Sarah went first, her arm still around Kaz, helping him along as he stumbled distractedly down the hallway. Tom and Peyton followed.

-Olympus Drive, Local Police Station, 6: 23 pm-

It had been a long and hard afternoon that had deftly faded into evening without anyone's notice. Tom, Sarah, and Peyton were left in the waiting room while Kaz was questioned over and over again. Tom had built up a bitter resentment to the police force; it was obvious that Kaz hadn't done anything so why drag it out? Why torment a seventeen year old boy who was clearly innocent?

It wasn't until later that the four were reunited. A pale and shaky-legged Kaz shuffled out of the room and slumped into the seat next to Tom, looking utterly exhausted. Tom put a comforting hand on his shoulder and glared at Officer Drima and the two policemen flanking her.

"He's not in any trouble, if that's what you're worried about." Drima said softly, "We're going to investigate this further. You four will be escorted back to the academy."

"'Fraid thas' not possible, ma'am." A policewoman walked into the room from the lobby, saluting as she did so, "Is' a right old blizzard out there. Ain't no one goin' nowhere's." She saluted again and stepped out.

"Well, this complicates things a bit." Drima rubbed her hands together and then started as the policeman on her left tapped her shoulder.

"There are the emergency cots in the storage room," He said, "They could be set up here with a space heater or two and those four could sleep out the storm 'till morning. Just clear some chairs away and viola!"

"Right you are, Lieutenant." Drima nodded once, "Get someone on that now. And also send for something to eat." The two policemen hurried off and Officer Drima turned to the four teenagers, "Once again, I must apologize." She massaged her forehead with her fingers, closing her eyes, and the four of them suddenly saw how tired and stressed the woman was, "After all that trouble and you can't even sleep in a proper bed. I'm really, very sorry."

"It's not your fault," Sarah said and Tom snorted. She shot him a dangerous look and he turned away, "You didn't make that storm."

"The cots, ma'am." The first policeman came back with four, long bags over his shoulders, "And two space heaters and some pillows and blankets." Another officer stood behind him carrying the aforementioned items, "We'll just set these up and get out of your hair."

"Thank you Lieutenant." Drima said, "I have to start planning on how to investigate this. I'll leave you to put things in order." She turned smartly on her heel, hiding her weariness and anxiety, and walked out of the waiting room.

Tom, Sarah, Peyton, and Kaz stayed off to the side and out of the way as the two policemen pushed several chairs back against the walls, laid out the cots, put down pillows and blankets, and set up the space heaters. When they left the small, square, white-walled room, Tom helped Kaz over to the nearest cot and deposited his best friend upon it, taking the one nearby. Peyton took the one next to him and Sarah claimed the very last cot. A few seconds later, another officer came in with four trays of food balanced precariously in his arms. He passed them out, flicked his gaze over the four of them briefly, and then stepped out, leaving them alone.

Kaz stared at the tray in front of him and pushed it away with a sick look on his face. He slowly unbuckled his boots and kicked them off and then dropped underneath the heavy blanket and buried his face in the pillow.

"Hey, Kaz, you gonna be okay?" Tom asked, setting aside his half-eaten tray of food.

"I don't…feel very well…" Came the muffled reply.

"Well, you were laying outside in the cold for at least fifteen minutes. Maybe you're sick?" Sarah had barely touched her food but she put aside her tray as well, "Then again, I'm not feeling to hot either."

"Same here." Tom ruffled his unruly black hair with one hand in an agitated fashion, "Probably 'cause we're all depressed. Peyton, how're you feeling?"

"Not hungry." Peyton poked at his food with a spork then sighed and set the tray aside, "We get to spend our birthdays in a police station. This sucks."

"What?" Even Kaz poked his head out from underneath the blankets and looked around at Peyton.

"You guys forgot? Seriously? Tomorrow's our birthdays. In about," He flicked his emerald gaze to the clock hanging on the wall, "Six and half hours, we're gonna be eighteen. Legal adults."

"Daunting." Tom muttered as Kaz disappeared back underneath his blanket, "But maybe we should—." He was interrupted by a very loud yawn that had him stretching his arms to the ceiling, "Maybe we should all get some sleep." He rubbed his eyes, yawned again, and lay down to snuggle underneath his blanket as well, "Good night."

"Night." Peyton rolled onto his stomach and pulled his blanket over his head.

"I'll get the lights then." Sarah stood and walked across the room. She flicked the light switch and the room was plunged into complete darkness. She slowly moved back across the room, knocked her legs against the edge of her cot, and crawled on top of it, feeling extremely tired and a little under the weather. With a yawn to rival Tom's, she too disappeared under her blanket and welcomed sleep with open arms.

-Olympus Drive, Local Police Station, 11: 56 pm-

Kaz tossed and turned on top of his cot, kicking his blankets off him as he did so. He was hot, burningly so, and the heat was making it difficult for him to stay asleep. He cracked his eyes open, wondering for a moment if it was the space heaters. But, no, that couldn't be it because it looked like someone had come in and turned them off. He looked around at Sarah, Peyton, and Tom but they all appeared to be sound asleep.

Sweat trickled down the side of his face. A feverish feeling settling over him, Kaz hauled himself off of his cot and tried to find the door. He stumbled into one of the space heaters and sent it crashing to the floor with a thunderous clang.

"Kaz?" That was Tom's voice, "Kaz, what're you doing?"

"I…I don't…" Kaz panted, tugging at his sweat soaked sweater, "Outside…too hot in here…"

"Too hot?" Tom was already walking across the room, rubbing sleep from his eyes, "Really, 'cause it feels fine to me." His blue eyes looked Kaz over, "Okay, real quick thought because I don't feel good." Tom pulled on his coat with shuddering arms and helped Kaz out the door, down the hall, and into the lobby where an officer on duty looked at the questioningly, "Just getting some fresh air."

The storm seemed to have died at some point during the night because there was no wind or falling snow, just mountains of white everywhere. Even as they watched, a snowplow went past, trying to clear the roads.

Kaz fell to his knees in the snow with a sigh, closing his eyes. His breath misted in the air, thicker than it should have been. Tom was about to point out the laying in the snow without a coat or boots on was a really stupid idea when there came a screech of tires that made him look around.

A late night driver had hit an uncovered patch of ice, lost control, and was now careening down the street…right towards the two boys.

Things happened in an instant.

Tom shouted a warning and threw up his hands.

The car skidded, front first, across the sidewalk.

Tom closed his eyes, expecting the worst.

There was a crunch of collapsing metal.

Tom opened his eyes slowly and gasped. His outstretched hands had _caught the front of the car_, stopping it dead in its tracks and bending the whole front end inward. Tom stumbled backwards in shock, starring first at the car and then at his hands.

"What the—!?" Someone behind him screamed and he whirled around to see Kaz doubled over on the ground. Steam rose into the air around him, snow melting into puddles that quickly evaporated. The air around his hunched over form was outlined with a wavering haze of super heated air.

"K-Kaz…!?" Tom's eyes were huge as he stared at his best friend. Then he cringed, muscles cramping. With whimpering cries of pain, he stumbled towards the door of the police station. He tripped and put a hand out to catch himself on the door. The door bent, groaned, and caved in, sending Tom sprawling on the floor where he lay, twitching on the tile.

Voices were screaming and shouting but it was all muddled. He couldn't focus. Images and thoughts intruded upon his mind, mingling with a pain he didn't understand. He squeezed his eyes shut and curled into a ball, trying to fight it all off. A wave of agony rippled through him and with it, a name…

_Fenrir…_

Tom's eyes flew open, brilliant neon and impossibly blue, power coursed through him like water through a creek, bubbling in his veins, begging to be released. He twisted onto his back, opened his mouth, and screamed. It echoed, ringing in his ears, bouncing in visible sound waves off the walls and smashing through the ceiling. Great drifts of snow tumbled in overhead, blurring everything into mixtures of color and not color.

"_You'll be here when I get back, right?"_

Figures ran back and forth, blurs of blue, shouting orders and horrific surprises.

_He danced out of reach of a swinging blade and brought up his own to clash against it. Sparks flew into the air as he fought to hold his mentor back. But Tangath Toborn was far older and far stronger than he…_

He wasn't human. His name wasn't Thomas Majors. He didn't belong on Earth.

"_You are too young to understand the responsibilities of a ruler."_

His name was Fenrir.

He was the Prince of the OverWorld.

He belonged in Perim.

Someone grabbed him and he thrashed, swinging punches left and right. Black garbed humans fell under his blows. He longed to unleash the power that lay just under his skin but he could not remember how. He spun in midair, taking down two of them. He landed on all fours and was about to jump up into an uppercut when something stung his shoulder. Fenrir looked around and pulled out the feathered dart embedded just above the twirling violet mark on his green skin. Snarling, he threw it to the floor and launched himself at the enemy again.

He grabbed one of them by the front of the bullet-proof vest they wore and threw them over his shoulder and to smash into another human. The he spun into a roundhouse kick, catching one in the side and knocking them over. His movements were quick and precise, even as memories and voices flashed through his mind, bringing back a past he'd forgotten for almost eighteen years.

He was Fenrir.

He crouched, grabbed an adversary by the ankle, hefted him up, and flung him into the ranks of some oncoming men in black.

He was the Prince of the OverWorld.

Another dart stung him on the back of the neck and he yanked that one out too, shaking his head. It was getting fuzzy, hard to think. His limbs felt tired and heavy.

He belonged in Perim.

His legs collapsed and he fell face first to the floor, unconscious. The black clothed men glanced at one another and then gathered him up.

-Olympus Drive, Local Police Station, 11:57 pm-

Peyton had a rather rude awakening. Cringing, he staggered out of the room and into the bathroom, arms around his middle. He crashed to the tile floor, panting, feeling constricted and as though his skin was too small for him. He pressed his forehead against the cold tile, fighting off the pain.

A police officer happened in on him and immediately ran over, crouching next to him and putting a hand on his back, "Hey, you okay—OUCH!" The man yanked his hand away and fell backwards. Blood welled up from the cut running across his palm, "What in the name of sanity—!?"

Bronze blades had ripped through the skin on the boy's back and torn through his shirt, gleaming in the fluorescent overhead lights. Even as the officer continued to stare in wonder and horror, a long, scaly tail thrashed into existence, cracking the tile as it smashed against the floor. The man screamed and ran from the room.

The boy on the floor was unaware of this. His mind was clouded with visions and voices, dancing in his brain, haunting him with a history that tormented him to realize he'd forgotten it.

"_I want you to be safe, Anubis." _

His name…that was his real name. Not Peyton Harding. But Anubis.

The Prince of the Mipedians.

In Perim.

_He ran across miles and miles of sand, churning it beneath his feet. Sunlight played across his face and glittered off his spikes. He pushed himself to go faster, trying to catch up to Siado…_

Bronze claws ripped his sweater to shreds and gouged jagged lines in the floor as he hoisted himself upright. Energizing power surged through him, shocking his adrenaline like a spark on a path of oil. His fingertips tingled but he did not know how to let that power out.

Anubis' fan-like ears twitched and he spun around just in time to get two feathered darts in the side of his neck. He bared his prominent lower fangs, pulling them out and crushing them in his hands, and stalked towards the men flooding through the bathroom doorway.

Then the floor tilted underneath his feet and he fell. He tried to get up again but his legs weren't responding. The heavy boots of the men echoed in the tiled room as they walked towards him.

He slipped into darkness, fighting to stay awake. One of the men nudged him with a gun barrel and, upon getting no response, motioned for his companions to come get the unconscious boy on the floor.

-Olympus Drive, Local Police Station, 11:57 pm-

Sarah woke up when Peyton stumbled out of the room.

_He's sure being noisy._ She thought and then realized she was alone. With a huff, she sat up and stretched. She was stiff and achy, like she'd been sick. She was just starting to wonder where Tom and Kaz had gotten to when a surge of mingled pain and memories washed over her and sent her tumbling back onto her cot.

"_Besides, I think I'd rather like to get out of these tunnels."_

Skin hardened and stretched and became the shell of an exoskeleton, ridged silver plating crested over it, and dragonfly wings unfolded from her back.

_She flew through the narrow tunnels of her underground home, wings buzzing. Laughing as she swept herself out of Wamma's reaching grasp…_

She was Seraphim. Not Sarah Adams.

She was the Princess of the Danians. Not a common school girl.

She belonged in Perim.

The walls of the waiting room cracked and bulged as tormenting agony made her unleash a deadly wave of power she could not control. Dust sprinkled from the ceiling, illuminated by the light streaming in through the now open door. Dark figures suddenly blocked the light, leveling guns at her. She took to the air.

"_You seem to be taking this "transfer" rather well."_

Guns popped and silver flashes shot past her. Three of them found marks beneath the exoskeleton of her joint plating. The world spun as she tumbled to the floor. Words and sounds became disjointed and muffled. The world dripped into black.

The men yanked out the darts and carried her away.

-Olympus Drive, Local Police Station, 11:59 pm-

All Kaz was aware of was the heat.

The stifling hot energy that came from inside him somewhere and the agonizing pain that was accompanying it. And the crystal clear memories. What he'd been seeing for years, what he thought had been visions and dreams, were memories from his past.

_Cerberus…_

He fell onto his side on the bare patch of sidewalk, walls of snow built around him like a fort. Heat rippled through him, wave after wave of heat and agony and memories. He barely registered the shouting voices and mayhem going on around him as he lay curled on the ground.

"_I'd rather know my son; the heir to the Throne of the UnderWorld; is somewhere far away and safe than have him in my sights and in Death's grip."_

Dark eyes flashed open and became filmed with an angry red, fangs were bared in threatening vengeance, and Cerberus leapt to his feet with a challenging snarl. He faced a circle of men dressed in all black with guns leveled at him.

He would not fall.

He was Cerberus.

The Prince of the UnderWorld.

And he would get back to Perim. No one was going to stop him.

His red eyes glowed in the darkness outside as he watched the men. His thick tail swayed back and forth in a threatening manner. The spines on his arms rose, ready to swipe any of them with their poison tips.

There was an echoing click as the men cocked their guns.

"_I'd heard rumors about war…"_

They all tensed and Cerberus, in his deceivingly relaxed position, tilted his head to the side in anticipation.

_He felt someone's hand drop onto his shoulder and looked around. His mother. He grinned at her sheepishly and she frowned, shaking her head. Apparently, sneaking out of the palace in the middle of the night was out of the question…_

They fired.

Cerberus dropped.

The thing about standing in a circle was, once their target had dropped out of the way, all their shots hit each other. The men dropped like flies.

Cerberus stood up and looked around, eyes glowing in anger. He heard a commotion behind him and turned around just in time to see them shoot down Fenrir. With a ferocious snarl, he leapt at them, claws extended. He landed on one's back, dug his vicious talons in while his claws slit the man's throat. Blood gushed over the tile. The other raised their guns but Cerberus spun off the man and kicked out one way, his tail lashing out in the other direction. Guns and blood skittered across the floor.

Another man lunged at him but he swept an arm out, his spines slicing through the sleeve of the man's shirt and raising a bloody cut. He stumbled back, looked at his arm, and started convulsing, making choking sounds. After a few seconds, he lay still. Cerberus' blazing eyes turned back to the other men, daring them to attack as well.

There was the crack of gunfire and two sharp pains in Cerberus' back. He tried to turn around to get at his assailants but the ground was churning like the stormy sea and he collapsed, vision going dark.

_No…_

Angry power fizzled inside him, burning hatred, fiery revenge.

_Not…without a fight…_

He clenched his fists and pushed himself up, arms shaking. Another crack and another pain, this time in his arm. His glazed eyes found a silvery dart with black feathers lodged there.

_How dare they…_

He tried to stand but his legs weren't working. Another dart lodged itself in the back of his neck. He could hardly keep himself conscious anymore.

_How dare they…_

The men were moving in cautiously, slowly. Cerberus' fury grew until it was ready to burst.

_How dare they!_

-Olympus Drive, Local Police Station, 12: 09 am-

The young man across the street was standing on a balcony, watching the whole mess play out. His smooth, dark skin blended somewhat with dim colored brick of the apartment building behind him but his eyes were an eerie shade of violet, almost neon in a way, and glowed in the darkness around him. His expression was completely blank but he radiated vehemence as the scene unfolded below him.

A sudden explosion lit his features brightly, showing a wide mouth and small, flat nose. He grinned, showing unnaturally white teeth, as the flames roared out of the windows and a hole was blasted through the front of the police station. What power. That had surely eradicated every one of those pesky men. The young man made to go inside again when something caught his eye and he whirled around to face the flaming building again.

His wide hands clenched the thick iron rail that trimmed the balcony and his features were contorted by a horrid mask of snarling wrath. More government agents were pouring out of the newly arrived black vans and into the police station. In a few moments, they returned, carrying the unconscious forms of four youths.

The young man's violet eyes were consumed with an unnatural light, glowing gold as they glared at the black vans vanishing down the street. They had just made a very grave mistake.

Forcing himself to calm down, the young man let out a slow breath and let go of the rail. There were indents in the iron bar where his fingers had curled around it. He watched the police station crumble and burn for a while longer and then stepped back into the shadows of his doorway when sirens sounded in the distance.

Things had not gone exactly as planned but, at least, he knew where to find them.

Now it was only a matter of getting in.

* * *

_Translations: Effrego Cuspis – The Breaking Point_

_Aheh, heh…lots of things to piss you off in this chapter. _

_So, can you guess the answer to some things: Why did Aras die; what caused his death? Where have Cerberus, Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim (yeah, they got their memories back!) been taken? Who was that person at the end? _

_Guess if you can…! XD_

_I had a good time writing this chapter. I actually like the way it turned out. Hope you enjoyed it too! _

_Thank you so much for reading, and for waiting for the updates! Hope I can post another one soon! Thanks for the reviews and please keep them coming! More reviews mean more chapters and make me actually get off my lazy butt to work on them! Ha, ha! _


	15. Expedio

_This is going to be a short chapter. I've been waiting to do this scene for, like, ever but when I put it in front of what I originally had for chapter fourteen, it didn't fit and just kind of ruined the momentum of the rest of the chapter. So I moved the other part of this chapter into chapter fifteen and made just this chapter fourteen. That's why this one's short. And also thirteen was long. X3

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_

**Expedio

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**

-Edwardian Leo-Davis Private Academy, Cafeteria-

Mercy sat at her usual table in the Cafeteria for breakfast the morning after her break-up with Kaz, feeling miserable. Tiffany was on her left, talking to some of her other friends, and Valerie was on her right with something like an "I told you so" expression playing across her face.

Mercy had wanted to talk to Kaz that morning but he hadn't shown up. Nor had Tom, Peyton, or Sarah. Mercy didn't wonder about it too much. Those four were so close together that if one of them didn't show, it was highly likely the other three weren't going to show either. Maybe it had something to do with why the boy's bathrooms had been roped off…

"'Ey Mercy!" The girl rolled her eyes, recognizing the sneering, accented voice.

"Shove off, Klay." She snapped, glaring at the tall, blonde boy.

Klay ignored her, "Did ya' here? Your _boyfriend_ went and got himself hauled off to the police station! And Majors, Adams, and Harding went with him! Ha!" He let out a burst of mocking laughter that was mimicked by Krystella standing behind him, "And then—oh, get this—and then they go blow the place up! Ahaaaaahahahahahaha!" He slammed a newspaper down on the table, howling with sardonic mirth.

Mercy picked up the paper and stared at the front page. It showed a picture of a decimated police station and then the pictures of four familiar faces, asking for their arrests. Mercy dropped the paper, a horrified look on her face. Klay laughed ever harder at her expression, slapping his leg with his hand. Mercy fumed angrily, stood, grabbed Valerie's hot chocolate ("Hey! Mercy!"), and threw the contents all over Klay. Klay shouted in fury and probably would have started punching her right there if the door hadn't slammed open and made everyone look around.

Eight men stood framed in the doorway, backlit by the sunlight reflecting off the white snow outside.

"Andrew Vanderhallin, Emily Warden, and Mercedes Ropard." Said one, "Please come with us. Now."

Silence reigned. There was a light scraping of chairs as the three students stood up and walked slowly towards the men. Mercy glanced back at her friends and they all stared back with wide, worried eyes. She slipped on her coat as she drew near the door.

"I am General Kelley. We apologize for interrupting your meal," Said a different man, "But we need your help. Mr. Vanderhallin, you will go with Privates Fredrickson and Tristan. Ms. Warden, with Privates Lightstir and Bek. Mr. Ropard, you will be with myself and Private Turn." He turned on his heel and left, the men trailing behind him, and, after a brief moment of hesitation, the three students.

The snow had been cleared off the paths, giving students access to their classroom and dorms once more but not to places like The Ring. As they headed down the sidewalks, Mercy could see the hibernating willows surrounding the large, flat stone, their boney branches reaching mournfully for the sky.

There was a creek of cold iron that drew her from the morbid thoughts The Ring had induced to look at where they were. She stopped, watching Andy follow the two Privates inside the iron fence.

"Ms. Ropard?" General Kelley was looking at her.

"I can't go in there, that's…the boy's dormitory." She muttered.

"You have permission." Kelley said stiffly, "This is a matter of…security." He and the Private headed inside and Mercy followed, if somewhat reluctantly. They climbed the stairs all the way to the fifth floor where Private Turn opened the door to room 512 and led them inside. There were piles of paper all over the floor and the doors to both bedrooms were ajar.

"Turn, you go with Ms. Ropard to look through the Kalinkas boy's room. I'll search Majors'." The General paused as he turned to head into the bedroom, "Ms. Ropard, you were close to Kazdan Kalinkas, were you not?"

"Um…yes…"

"Then I need you to tell me if anything looks unusual in that room. If there's something in there that looks like an item he normally would not have, I want you to let Private Turn to know immediately. Do you understand?"

"Yes…what's this abo—?"

"Very good. Carry on, Turn." And he vanished into what was supposedly Tom's former bedroom. Mercy followed the Private into Kaz's room, feeling odd about intruding upon her ex-boyfriend's territory.

When hit the lights, she gasped. The room's walls were plastered with drawings Kaz had done. Some were in color, others weren't, some were on pieces of sketchpad paper, and others were on scrap paper or ripped off corners of homework. But all of them had something in common; they all depicted strange monsters and beautifully exotic landscapes. Private Turn let out a low whistle as he surveyed the room,

"Man, this kid's got talent. Well, to work." He started checking all the books on the shelves and shifting through the CDs on the racks.

Mercy let her eyes travel over the walls for a moment or two and then looked down at Kaz's bed. It was mess, papers scattered all over it, half finished sketches, some of the blotched with what looked like tears. A stuffed purple cat with X's for eyes was lying across the pillow. Mercy picked it up, turned it over in her hands. She'd never thought of Kaz as a cat person.

"Ah," Mercy jumped and the toy fell out of her hands. She looked over her shoulder at Private Turn but the man was distracted by one of Kaz's sketchbooks so she turned away and knelt down on the floor to pick up the cat. It had rolled under the bed and Mercy went to her belly on the carpet, sticking her arm under the bed to find it. Her fingers brushed something rough and covered in dust. Curious, she pulled it out.

It was a leather bag, of sorts, the top weaved with a thick leather drawstring and the shoulder straps clinking with strange, old metal clasps. She ran her fingers over it, felt an engraving in the leather, and wiped the dust off of it. It was an ornate letter "C" decorated with beautifully stamped flames and twining wolf-like things that chased each other's tails around the letter.

"_C"?_ Mercy thought to herself, _But Kaz doesn't spell his name with a "C"…_

She shot a glance at the Private but he still distracted with the pile of sketchbooks. So she turned back to the bag, eased the drawstrings through the loops, and opened it. She couldn't hold back the slight gasp of wonder and amazement; there was _gold_ sitting in the bottom of the bag.

Mercy stuck her hand in and drew out a bracelet of solid gold with a large, round disk set into it. Carved into the disk was a symbol; a circle with an open middle and another circle inside that, an arched line curving beneath the larger circle. She looked back in, there was another bracelet just like it and what looked like a belt made of links of gold. Something was underneath the belt.

She cast another, now wary, glance at Turn but he was _still_ going through the sketchbooks, talking to himself all the while. Mercy carefully moved aside the gold belt and tugged out what was underneath. It was circlet, burnished gold set with rubies and diamonds, with looping holes on the side. As she turned it over in her hands, it clicked apart, the circles splitting in half. She blinked. Was this some sort of costume?

"What's that?" She jumped and looked up at Private Turn. She hadn't even heard him come up behind her, "Holy crap…that's…that's…" He took it from her, saw the bag and snatched it up too, "Where'd you find these!?"

"Under the bed, way in the back." Mercy pointed and then remembered the stuffed cat and reached underneath the bed to get it. She dusted it off and rubbed her thumb up and down its belly.

"Private Turn, Ms. Ropard, did you find anything of interest?" General Kelley was standing in the doorway with a dusty leather bag similar to the one Mercy had found in one hand and what looked like a journal in the other.

"A bag, sir." Turn responded, "And some very interesting drawings."

"Bring the bag and all the drawings. His team will want to examine them. Ms. Ropard, you will be escorted back to the Cafeteria." Kelley looked at the cat in her hands, "We'll take that too."

Turn took the cat from her, stowed the circlet back in the bag, and started gathering up the sketchbooks and peeling the drawings off the wall. Mercy watched him. Her gaze fell upon a picture in the corner, by the head of the bed, which she hadn't noticed before.

"Can I have that one?" She asked, pointing to it. The General frowned at it and then nodded once. Mercy crawled across the bed (her mind offered unhelpfully that it smelled just like Kaz) and peeled the picture off the wall, "Thank you." She held it to her chest, "You don't have to escort me back to the Cafeteria, I'm just going to run back to my room and put this away."

Private Turn shot a questioning glance at General Kelley but the General only nodded to say he was fine with that. Mercy hurried out of the room, down the stairs, and out into the snow. She almost ran into the two Privates who'd gone with Emily, Sarah's roommate, but muttered a quick apology and dodged into the girl's dormitory.

Once in her room, Mercy taped the drawing to her wall just above her computer desk. Then she stepped back and looked at it for a while. It was a sketch of her, sitting at a desk and looking thoughtful with the eraser of her pencil on her cheek like it was when she was thinking hard. Even though it was just a sketch, it was a wonderful drawing. She smiled to herself, turned, and left the dorm.

As she headed towards the Cafeteria again, she caught sight of the eight men at the front gate. It was open, revealing a large black van parked there, the rumbling engine saying it was clearly ready to go. All of the men now filing into the vehicle had armfuls of stuff they'd taken from the rooms.

_But why?_ Mercy wondered as she kept moving, listening as the van revved and drove off down the street, _If they're looking for them, why do they need stuff from their rooms? Evidence? But how are sketchbooks and a stuffed cat evidence?_

* * *

_Translations: Expedio - Clarity _

_Klay's been out of the picture for a while and I just watched _When A Codemaster Calls_ so I threw him in there as his usual jerky self. (grins)_

_So there you have it. This scene has been planned for a while. I thought it'd be a good idea to show what happened at the academy after the four heirs vanished. Not to mention those guys coming in and taking stuff…hm, wonder what that was about? I can't wait to see what you people guess about where Fenrir, Cerberus, Anubis, and Seraphim have been whisked off to! So exciting…!_

_Mmmm, things are building up, gaining speed. We've climbed to the top of the hill and now we're sliding down it. What events will follow? Will the four heirs ever get home? Who will live and who will die? Who ends up with whom? Is Snape good or evil? Will Hogwarts reopen? Will Voldemort be defeated? _

_Whoa, whoa, whoa! What just happened!? Since when did Voldemort show up! Hey! Get out of here! Shoo, shoo! (waves her hands in the air) Get away you! Stupid Harry Potter references…! Sneaking into my fan fiction…! (grumbles)_

_Anyway, I'll see you guys around! Thanks so much for reading and leaving those wonderfully wonderful reviews! And thanks for being so supportive and understanding and for waiting so patiently for these updates! Please leave a review! Reviews bring more chapters and squish all those stupid, horrid, evil mosquitoes! XO I hate mosquitoes! _


	16. Tantum Liberi

_I'm running out of movies to watch while I'm working on my art portfolio for college so I've started watching commentaries. Yeah. Commentaries. Let's see, the other day it was _The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe_, _Prince Caspien_, and_ _the first DVD of the _Extended Two Towers_. That's how bored I am. _

_I need to get some new movies…

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_

**Tantum Liberi

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**

-Area 51, Building 005: Interrogation, Room A4-

Dr. Ron Swift was not a formidable looking man, at least not a first glance. He was of an average height and build with a pointed chin and thin, pencil line eyebrows. His ebony hair was brushed back out of his face, his narrow gray eyes were bright with alertness.

But it was his presence that made people take a second glance at him. There was a cold, blank, calculating aurora about him that said he cared not whom stood in his way as long as he got what he wanted in the end. Even his baritone voice had a frostiness that turned women away; not that he was interested in them in the least bit.

Swift had been working at Area 51 since he could remember and no one knew any better. The government files all stated he worked as a deliverer for pharmacies. Swift wouldn't have it any other way. The fewer people who knew Area 51 was real, the better. People meant paparazzi, paparazzi meant photographs, photographs meant infuriated "I Heart Alien" hippies, and that meant lawsuits and all sorts of paperwork.

Swift hated paperwork.

He also hated kids.

So when he was assigned to work on the Olympus Quartet, he was not pleased.

He'd watched the news about the explosion at the police station in that mock city that no one knew of. But he passed it off the same way the anchor woman had; a gas leak or some such silly thing.

However, upon arriving at the main building that morning he'd discovered that it had actually been the work of four unusual looking teenagers (code named for the street the police station had been on) and that he was running the project that would be looking into exactly _what_ they were.

Because they certainly weren't human.

Swift was currently standing on one side of the most durable one-way glass ever created, his feet apart slightly and his hands clasped behind his back as his emotionless storm-cloud eyes watched what was happening on the other side.

"Give me audio." He told his assistant, a one Mira Herza, without looking away from the scene before him. She pressed a button and there was a click as the speakers fizzed to life. Marc Poll, the psychologically manipulative interrogator, was speaking, his voice low and calm and soothing as it slid easily through the expensive speakers,

"—_on now, son, what's your name?"_

The thing (Swift could not think of it as a "boy") bound by heavy, indestructible steel to the stiff backed metal chair said nothing, only turned its nose up with an air of disgust and anger. It was boy-shaped with pointy ears and an incredible strength that had nearly wrenched the chair from where it was bolted to the floor. It had short black hair with a single strand of white that dangled down the left side of its face, bottle green skin (this had excited many of the enthusiasts in the lab department when they'd seen the pictures), violet markings that swirled down its arms, legs and face, and a great dislike for shoes (or so he'd heard).

"_Look, we just have some questions. We're not going to hurt you."_ Marc said and Swift couldn't help but think,

_Yet._

"_Oh yeah?" _The thing's voice was crisp and medium, the strange accent in its voice layered with sarcasm, _"Then why am I strapped to a chair being interrogated without any idea where I am!?"_

Marc didn't miss a beat, _"These are simply precautions. For our own safety and yours."_

"_Tch, _your_ safety!? I'll bet! Where's the person in charge!? I wanna talk to them! Then we'll talk about safety."_ Those brilliant blue eyes narrowed in dislike as they focused on Marc.

"_He's preoccupied." _Marc responded smoothly as he laced his fingers together and propped his chin on them, resting his elbows on the tabletop, _"So, while we're waiting, I thought we'd have a little talk. And talk always starts with introductions, don't they?"_ Marc leaned back with a cool smile, _"Hello. I'm Dr. Marc Poll. What's your name?"_

"_I'll tell you my name when you tell me what you did with my friends!" _

"_Your friends are also preoccupied at the moment."_

"_You mean they're tied up just like me!"_

"_The sooner you talk, the sooner you are free."_

There was a silence as the thing in the chair processed the suggestion, mulling it over in its conniving little brain as Marc waited patiently, silently, on the other side of the table. Finally, the thing said in a low voice,

"_Fenrir."_

"_Nice to meet you, Fenrir."_

"_Likewise, you arrogant dastard."_

"_So tell me Fenrir, what are doing on this planet?"_ Marc knew how to play a person like a piano, weeding the information out of them with an eerie sort of ease. He could probably have gotten a mute man to spill his secrets.

Swift's team was handpicked of the best people his unit budget could afford. There was himself, of course, and Marc Poll. Then there was his assistant, Mira, who happened to be an expert at electronics and mathematics, Sunny Twill, a man versed in anatomy and chemistry, Terrion Tide and his twin sister Tax, both specialists with contraptions and confounding mazes (they'd made amusement park mazes before they were fired for the complexity of their work), Warrek Blandsdale, the astrologist and "almost alien-hugging-hippie", and Ilene D'Arind, an Irish woman who had immersed herself in fantasy and fiction at a young age; she could tell you any legend from any culture without batting an eye lash. There were also the aides and guards and all the regular sort of people who Swift didn't even bother to learn the names of.

"_I've come to conquer this puny planet,"_ The thing called Fenrir was sneering in reply to Marc's previous question, _"Steal the goods, turn all the men and children into slaves, take the women for my pleasure, and make you all worship me as a god!"_

Marc raised a slow eyebrow to this answer, obviously stating he was not amused by Fenrir's efforts at being sarcastic. Swift watched him. Marc sat in silence for a while, having a staring contest with Fenrir, and then finally stood, saying as he did so,

"_Thank you for the information—Fenrir, was it? My superior will be…pleased."_ Marc Poll cast a quick glance and a fleeting smile at the one-way glass where he knew Swift was watching, _"I'll talk to you again later."_ And he walked out the door.

"_Hey!"_ The thing in the chair started shouting, yanking at the steel bands again, _"Hey! Hey, come back here! You said you'd let me out if I talked! Liar! LIAAAARRRRRRRR!"_ The speakers crackled and fizzed with static and Swift hurriedly switched off the audio. He glanced at Mira who shrugged. She didn't know where the static had come from either.

"Sedate that one." Swift gestured to the still ranting non-human entity in the chair, "I'm going to talk to Ilene."

-Area 51, Building 005: Interrogation, Room A6-

Cerberus was terrified.

He was strapped in a cold metal chair in an empty room with concrete walls and a metal table in front of him. And he was alone. His heart thudded in his chest. He couldn't think what had happened at the police station, it was all a blur of pain and memories and fear.

And this place…

Wherever this was, it reeked of danger. Scents overlaid scents, creating a web of stories and secrets far too intricate for his fear clouded mind to siphon through at the moment. But he could smell death; its musky smell permeated the place; and fear; sharp and tangy like hot metal; and pain-filled sweat and blood, and a sadistic excitement that made him go cold.

The door to his left opened and he whipped his head around to look. A man with glittering black eyes and wispy blonde hair entered, followed by a rather short woman, her hair a burnished red and her eyes metallic dark brown behind thin-wire glasses. The man seated himself in the chair across from Cerberus while the woman stood to the side and crossed her arms over her white lab coat.

Cerberus got a horrid sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Hello there. I'm Dr. Marc Poll," Said the man, "And this lady here is Professor Ilene D'Arind." He gestured with one hand and the woman nodded once, "What's your name?"

Cerberus looked at him warily, flicked his eyes to the professor, and then looked back at Dr. Poll. He didn't trust either of them but he said in a soft voice,

"Cerberus."

D'Arind's eyebrows shot up but she made no comment. Dr. Poll made a "hmmm" noise in his throat with the barest hint of smile on his lips.

"Cerberus," Professor D'Arind's voice had an accent to it, one the UnderWorld Prince couldn't place, "As in the Hound of Hell? The Guardian to the Gates of the Underworld?" This was all said in a slightly cynical tone.

"I don't know about any gates," Cerberus growled darkly, "But I don't like this place. It reeks of pain and fear and blood. Where I am? Where are my friends!?"

"Ah, yes, your companions." Dr, Poll drummed his fingers on the table top as he spoke, "They also have some rather unusual names. Fenrir—."

"—the Norse God of Destruction, a giant wolf said to bring about Ragnarock; the end of the world." Professor D'Arind interrupted.

"—Anubis—."

"The Egyptian, jackal-headed God of Death, it was said he led the souls of pharaohs into the next life."

"—and Seraphim?"

"A six winged angel, the wind of their wing beats were supposed to clear evil spirits from the body; the Legion of the Almighty."

Cerberus was shaking his head, confused and getting frustrated, "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Why do you name yourselves as higher beings?" Dr. Poll asked, "Is it because you think it will strike fear in us?"

"My parents named me!" Cerberus shouted, yanking against the hold of the metal bands holding him to the chair.

"Why were you masquerading as humans? How long have you been here?" Dr. Poll's gaze was filled with dark intensity and Cerberus closed his eyes, shaking his head back and forth in a desperate attempt to make them understand.

"We were hiding! We were hiding because we were told to! It was to keep us safe! Why're you doing this!? What've we done wrong!?"

"Did you make that police station explode?" Dr. Poll asked coolly and Cerberus' eyes snapped open. They were no longer dark chocolate but burnished topaz filtering red. Marc glanced at Ilene but she was studying Cerberus intently.

"I'm sorry…" The red-skinned boy moaned, "It was an accident…I didn't mean to hurt anyone…please let us go…" He turned his glowing eyes on them, "Please! We didn't do anything wrong! Not on purpose! We're just trying to get home!"

"And where is your home?" Dr. Poll asked.

Cerberus closed his mouth with a snap, jaw tightening. Humans couldn't know. They weren't supposed to know. It was bad enough that they had caught him and his friend but if they found Perim who knew what they would do. Cerberus had watched enough sci-fi movies when he was Kaz to know what humans did to things they didn't understand. He swallowed thickly and shook his head,

"I dunno…I don't remember…" He looked away, staring at the metal tabletop, eyes fading back into dark brown, "We were here too long under our Gl—disguised as humans. We forgot…things…"

"So you don't know where your home is but you're trying to get back there?" Professor D'Arind said, "I think you're lying."

"Ilene, please." Dr. Poll held up a hand to silence the woman beside him. The professor frowned at him but said nothing Marc turned back to Cerberus who was watching them both with a frustrated and upset expression, "Alright, we're going to stop for now. You'll find you're going to be treated rather well here; your own rooms, food, even a rec room. All we want in return is your cooperation in some little experiments. That's all we ask."

"You know what," Cerberus sighed, flexing his clawed fingers against the arms rests of the chair. Sparks shot upwards and a screech raised the hair on both adults' arms. Cerberus' claws left scratches on the metal, "I've decided I don't like you guys."

-Area 51, Connecter Hall between Building 004 and Building 003-

All the buildings in Area 51 were connected by more of the reinforced glass but that was tinted black so there was no seeing in or out. Dr. Swift walked down one of these connecting hallways with sharp, brisk steps. Mira hurried along behind him, eager to keep up. All four of the projects from the Olympus Quartet had been sedated and moved into their rooms in the Study Quarters of Building 003. Which meant Swift and his team could go to the Monitoring Room on the other side of that safe building and watch them go about their business.

The man opened the door, let Mira pass him, and walked in after her, closing the door behind him. He settled into a seat in front of the large wall of monitors, Warrek on once side and Ilene on the other, and let his gaze flick from screen to screen. He settled on the one calling itself Anubis, watched its tail thrash about as it scoured the room, trying to find a way out. There was no way out.

Those rooms had walls three feet thick, laced in reinforced steel, and all the furniture was made of metal and bolted to the floor. The walls were white, as were the floor and ceiling, and there was no color. The lights were controlled from the Monitoring Room as was the temperature of each room.

"I want you to turn the air on cold, as cold as it will go. I want to see how they handle it." When no one moved, Swift flashed his gaze around at his subordinates, "Do not make me repeat myself." Sunny reached out and cranked a knob around as far as it would go, "I want someone watching these at all times with reports on every movement. Work in pairs—no Terrion, you can Tax cannot work together—and change shifts every three hours. If it's your shift and I need you for something else, get an aide to take your place."

"Yessir." Came the reply from the rest of his team.

"Very good. Sunny and Warrek, you have first watch. The rest of you, come with me. We'll start discussing experiment plans to suggest to the director." Swift stood and everyone but Sunny and Warrek followed him out of the room. As soon as the door had shut Warrek let out a heavy sigh, running a hand through his dusty tan hair.

"You don't like it either?" Sunny asked, looking eerie in the lights from the screens. He had a lot of albino in him; his blonde hair was almost white, his skin was just as close, and his eyes were dull redish-brown, the color of dried blood.

"Thas' right." Warrek replied, his Southern accent heavy, "I don't care _what_ Swift says, them "monsters" in there look like kids ter me." He looked at the screens again, "Albaits, _strange_ lookin' kids, but kids all the same. An' it don't give meh no good feelin's to be pokin' holes in 'em and lockin' 'em in rooms."

"I know what you mean." Sunny replied, propping a notepad on his lap and scribbling down notes as he watched the one called Seraphim clawing at the ceiling, dragonfly wings beating up a frenzy, "I saw their pictures, their profiles, the effects the retrieval team got from their rooms…they looked nice enough. I just can't get it through my head that these teenagers are _bad_. I don't sense any hostility form them at all."

"Marc-o Poll-o, oh great 'n' wise psychoanalyst that he is, seems to have it in his head that' them there kids is gonna take over the world or some such thing." Warrek snorted, writing in a notebook as well, eyes trained on the Fenrir one, "That guy has got to psychoanalyze himself sometime; he's got more 'in one screw loose."

Sunny chuckled and Warrek looked at him, "Wha' so funny?"

"The way you talk, sometimes I forget you're an astrologer."

"Psh, keep yer comments to yerself, Yankee." Warrek retorted in a friendly, yet teasing manner. There was silence between them, only the scratching of pencils across papers could be heard. The longer they watched, the less active the Olympus Quartet became.

"How cold's it in there?" Warrek asked, pencil hovering on a line of paper.

"Real cold." Sunny replied.

"Can I have some numbers, Yankee?"

"If you quit calling me a Yank." Sunny leaned forward and looked at the room temperature, repeated it to Warrek, and sat back. Another bit of silence passed between them. Sunny finally asked, "How long have we been sitting in here watching these kids freeze their bums off?"

Warrek glanced at his overly large wrist watch, "Ah, about two and half hours."

"Geez," Sunny tossed his blonde-white hair, scowling, "My eyes are starting to hurt and those teens aren't going to come out from under those blankets." He rubbed his eyes, "We've done all sorts of things we're not proud of in here but nobody's ever gotten hurt—."

"Well, nobody we _knew_." Warrek pointed out.

"But this is really taking the cake. We've never had subjects _this young_ before." Sunny waved a hand at the screens, "Their just kids! They just turned eighteen, according to their files!"

"Try tellin' Swift they're kids. You know what he calls 'em?" Warrek leaned closer to Sunny's chair, "He calls 'em _things_. Thas' what he thinks 'o' them. Things. Huh, no wonder he ain't gotta girl."

Sunny laughed but sobered quickly. He sighed as he returned his eyes to the monitors, "I guess you're right, Warrek. But it'll take more than a girl to warm that cold heart of his."

* * *

_Translations: Tantum Liberi – Only Children_

_Not much with the heirs in this chapter but I had to set up the—HOLY CRAP! (dodges a pickup truck that was thrown at me by angry readers) Ahhhhhgggg! Don't hurt me! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! AAAHHHHH! (dodges a bunch of sharp pointy objects) Don't kill me! Please, I'm begging you! (hides in her metal bunker)_

_Look, I know you all want me to send the heirs right home and you're all pissed because they're not and you really wanna kill Swift 'cause you know he's going to be really mean to them but…this had to happen. I swear that they _will get back to Perim_ one way or another. I'm not going to stop them from going home. _

_So anyway, kind of filler chapter because I had to set up the situation at Area 51. Who believes in Area 51 anyway? Hmph, I dunno. (shrugs)_

_Well, thanks so much for reading! This will probably the last update for a long time. (sad face) But thank you for sticking around and waiting for the updates! And for the reviews! I love reading reviews! See you guys in a while! Byes!_


	17. Periculosus ut Vestri Valetudo

_Left you guys hanging, didn't I? Really threw you for a loop there, didn't I? Yeeaaahhh, you guys know I'm not nice enough to let them get their memories back and go home. X3 _

_And anyway, it's like some reviewers said…they gotta blow Area 51 to H-E-double hockey sticks. Ahee…hee, hee…AHAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! XD

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**Periculosus ut Vestri Valetudo

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-Area 51, Building 003: Study Quarters, Recreational Room-

The four heirs learned very quickly to hate their new prison. There was no compassion, no feeling, no discrimination.

They were all treated equally.

They were all treated like lab rats.

_If only…_Fenrir thought day after day, _If only I could remember how to reach that power. That burning whirlwind inside of me…if only I could reach it!_

But he couldn't remember how.

None of them could.

It was day after day after day of horrible hours stretching into lifetimes for them.

They hardly got to see one another; their meals were eaten alone in their rooms, passed through metallic flaps in the doors, whenever they were taken from their rooms they were blindfolded and handcuffed and headphones were clamped over their ears to block out noise. The only times they got a chance to talk were the moments when they were given free reign in the reinforced rec room.

It was a nice place if pure white was your style of décor. There was a large screen TV with a giant stereo system and DVD player, a PS3 gaming system and a few games, a couch, a couple of chairs, a water cooler, a book shelf, and video cameras in every corner and hanging from the ceiling.

"I think I'm going to kill myself." Fenrir said one day as they sat in front of the television on a couple of beanbags watching _The Wizard of Oz_.

"Get real." Seraphim muttered, "If you tried to kill yourself, Swift would wet his pants and you'd be in Marc's office faster than you could say Pyroblaster."

"Pyroblaster," Anubis said without looking away from the screen. Then he started chanting, "Mowercycle, Torwegg, Aqua Shield, Wind Strider, Spectral Viewer, Mugi—."

"Shut up, you idiot!" Seraphim snapped at him, the locked leather bands restraining her wings creaked as she unconsciously tried to flutter them in her nervous way, "You're mouth is as big as your appetite. And sometimes just as disgusting."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Anubis frowned at her, scratching the side of his scaly neck with bronze claws.

"You put ketchup on your blueberry muffin that time at the Academy. I saw you! It was gross!"

"You ate sushi!"

"That's actually _food_!"

"Ketchup and muffins are food!"

"Not together they're not!"

"Guys!" Fenrir's urgent voice cut through their argument, "Would you cut it out! None of that is helping us get out of here! And besides…" He looked around to his right, "I don't think Cerberus is doin' too good."

The other two looked past him. Cerberus was curled into a ball on his beanbag, apparently asleep, and shivering. There were flexible plastic sleeves over his arms that kept his spines from popping up and poisoning someone and there were plastic nubs on the tips of his horns and the spikes on his tail. He looked pathetic and lost.

"Cerb? Dude, you gonna be alright?" Anubis asked, leaning a little past Fenrir to look at his friend, "Sorry we shouted…"

"Yeah, sorry." Seraphim said softly.

"Mmmmhhh…" Cerberus raised his head from his arms, glazed chocolate eyes looking into Anubis' bright emerald ones, "You…you forgot the…Vile Driver…" He murmured and then buried his face in his arms again.

Anubis looked at Fenrir, then at Seraphim, and then back at Fenrir. He shrugged, grinned, and sat back, saying,

"He's alright."

But Cerberus himself was far from alright. He wouldn't—_couldn't_—let the others see, though. He was strong; he was the Prince of the UnderWorld, the son of the mighty Chaor. He could get over this.

Whatever this was.

-???-

"_**He is sick! She pushed him too far! His body could not handle the strain of the **_**Carmen of Angelus**_**! Now look at him!"**_

"_**It is as much as her doing as it is ours. But the **_**trova procer**_** and his companions will keep he stable. Continue your…manipulation of him."**_

"_**He cannot handle it! He will die! Do you hear me, fool!? He will **_**die**_** and with him our hopes of harnessing the Goddess!"**_

"_**Fool!? You **_**dare**_** call me fool!? Know your place, underling! He is the Catalyst! We must have him! Now! You have grown far too big for your place…it is time you were…disposed of."**_

"_**You? Ha! You have been locked in this chamber so long you no longer know the difference between day and night! You have forgotten the feeling of cold water on your flesh—!"**_

"_**I am **_**more**_** than flesh—!"**_

"_**And you do not realize that it makes you weaker as well as stronger! You are nothing but energy! Energy in motion remains in motion unless acted upon by an outside force; is that not one of those silly human laws of science?"**_

"_**What is your point!?"**_

"_**I will stop your motion!"**_

"_**No! No! Traitor! Traitor! What have you done!? Where are my armies!? You fool!"**_

"_**Ha! Now I am the fool!? Insolent worm! **_**I**_** concocted this plan!**_** I**_** set it into motion!**_** I**_** contacted Ker Berethrou first! His body is mine by right! And you have outlived your usefulness…"**_

"_**What are you doing!? Stop! Stop that! I command it of you!"**_

"_**You can't command me any longer! Your powers are **_**mine**_** now! I rule this city! Mine, you hear me, mine! And once the Catalyst comes to me and I get the Goddess…all of Perim shall be mine!"**_

"_**AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAHHHGGGGGGG!!!"**_

-Area 51, Building 002: Test Sites, Unknown Room, Two days later-

The numb sensation in Cerberus' chest that had been growing the past couple of days had reached an all time high painful. What had begun as pins and needles of ice in his stomach had spread to stabbing knife aches in his lower abdomen and then slowly and painfully escalated into a crystal sharp agony that left him short of breath and whimpering. He'd skipped out on his lunch; just the smell of the food had made him nauseous; and was not looking forward to the maze Dr. Swift had promised them yesterday.

The floor seemed to be tilting underneath his feet as the armed guards led him, blindfolded and deaf, from his room. He was stopped in one place and then dragged around some more. The headphones were yanked off rudely and he heard a series of hisses, like displaced air, and then his blindfold was removed and he winced at the white light that blinded him briefly. When his eyes adjusted, he found himself facing a wall of white.

The young heir started shivering—when had it gotten so cold?—and stumbled forward into Swift's Stupid Maze, as Anubis called it. It changed every time but it never stopped him from feeling like a rat looking for the cheese. There were all sorts of nasty tricks that those Tide twins had set up in the maze and most of them hurt. What the object of the mazes was, no one was sure. Fenrir said it was so all of those "white-coat losers" could get a good laugh.

After what felt like hours, Cerberus was ready to sit down in the middle of the floor and quit. He was shivering so badly he could barely walk and a sheen of sweat covered every inch of his exposed skin. Gasping, numb all over, he leaned against a wall. His head started spinning, the room swayed, the floor lurched, and the last thing he remembered was the sensation of fall.

Fenrir rounded a corner just in time to see his best friend go down.

"CERBERUS!" He leapt to his friend's side and placed a hand on his shoulder only to draw it back with a yelp of surprise, "You're like an ice block! What happened!? Cerberus, talk to me!" The OverWorld Prince looked around wildly, panic ringing his brilliant blue eyes in white, "SOMEONE HELP! SOMEBODY! HELP!" There was no one, only silence. Frustrated tears stung Fenrir's eyes, "I HOPE YOU BURN, YOU DUNG-SUCKING TOXIS SPAWN! I HOPE YOU ROT AND EVEN MAGGOTS WON'T EAT YOU!" He reached out a shuddering hand for his unconscious friend, paused, and then screamed, "CERBERUS, DON'T YOU DARE DIE!"

Thudding footsteps. Fenrir looked around in time to be knocked aside by several uniformed guards and some of Sunny Twill's medics. They scooped up Cerberus with not-quite-gentle hands and vanished. Minutes later, more guards pounced on him and, after a brief struggle, dragged him from the maze kicking and screaming at the top of his lungs.

-Area 51, Building 004: Medical Labs, Emergency Medical Wing-

Swift was furious and his whole team knew it. Apparently, the one called Cerberus had been getting sick and Twill hadn't noticed. Now the medical expert was fervently discussing things in hushed tones with Blandsdale just outside the large medical room where the thing was being held.

Swift strolled up to him, cold fury rolling off of him. He didn't even bother to hide his displeasure as he approached; if this one died, it could mean a prelude to losing the other three. Swift would not see that happen.

"How is it? What happened to it?" He demanded, hands clasped behind his back. He felt a very faint glimmer of satisfaction from the nervous expression Sunny Twill shot his way. Warrek wasn't even looking at him.

"We're not sure, sir. Would you like to see hi—it for yourself?"

"Yes." It was a short, clipped answer but lashed out harshly enough for the doctor to know he was in trouble. Sunny opened the heavy steel door with a keypad, a voice recognition lock, a handprint lock, and a pressure pad lock. Beyond was a rectangular room with another door to the far left and boring cement on the floor, ceiling, and three of the walls. The other wall was another sheet of that reinforced glass with a panel of screens scrolling information.

Through the glass, a white room could be seen, glowing with large overhead lights. In the middle of the room was a bed on which lay Cerberus, held to the thin mattress with thick straps and buckles. His was shivering, nearly shaking the whole structure, sweat gleaming in the white light from overhead, but he appeared to be unconscious.

"As soon as we laid him down on the bed he kept trying to roll over on his stomach so we had to pin him on his back." Sunny was saying, offering Swift a rolling swivel chair before taking one of his own. Warrek silently took a seat next to the door, face hard and expressionless.

"Details, Twill, give me _details_."

Sunny's odd colored eyes flashed briefly to the screens on the panel and then back to Swift. To be more accurate, to a point just above Swift's right shoulder.

"His body temperature is dangerously low. Well, for a human, anyway; for him, I'm not so sure but the way he's been reacting," Sunny rubbed the back of his neck, using the report as an excuse to turn his gaze to the trembling figure beyond the glass, "I'm guessing it's not so good for him. We've cranked the heat in there as high as we can without frying our equipment and we're working on getting blankets and heatpads or whatever to warm him up. What it is…at this point we don't know."

"Hmmm," Swift said, "Blandsdale, do you have anything?"

"Nothin', sir." Warrek replied blandly, looking Swift right in the eye with no change of expression, "I know most stuff but these four I jus' can't find a place to classify. They don' fit in any of my categories. I'm siphoning through old records at the moment for somethin' I mighta' missed."

"Good. For now." Swift stood and ran one hand smoothly over his hair just to make sure it was all in place; an unconscious reaction to the anger and nervousness he was forcing himself to hide, "I want that thing in there healthy again or so help me someone's going to get hurt." And he swept out of the room.

Warrek made a face after him as the door slammed shut, "Pompous paper-licker. We're doin' all the hard work while he struts around or sits in his office and signs his name, takin' all the credit."

"Easy, Warrek." Sunny muttered, eyes on the screens, "He just has his reputation at stake."

"Tsch, he hates 'em. Them kids." Warrek spun in his chair, gesturing to Cerberus, "Hates kids, hates them, hates kids and them. Hates everything."

"Hmph." Sunny kicked away from the panel and tilted his head back with a sigh, "Unfortunately, I can't afford to let this project fail either. I need the money. Family business and all that." He glanced at Warrek, "And don't even think about telling me you don't need the money either. I know what your plans are, friend; I've seen that ranch plan you've got set up in your office."

"Ahhgg," Warrek ruffled his own hair with one large hand, "Shut yer mouth! Not sayin' I like this! Stupid…Olympus Quartet…" He looked through the glass at Cerberus for a few moments then said softly, "I don't know what's goin' on here, Sunny. I've got no clue where these kids came from or what they're doin' here. And from what I've heard, neither does Poll. Swift's askin' me to fix 'em? I don' know how…"

"Aha!" Sunny jerked upright, slapping his hands on the edge of the panel of screens, "But his friends might!"

-Area 51, Building 004: Medical Labs, Emergency Medical Wing, a few minutes later-

Seraphim tossed her head as the blindfold was removed, settling her golden hair back down between her folded wings. Then she cried out in shock and ran to the wall of glass,

"Cerberus!"

"Get away from there!" Four guards grabbed her and hauled her backwards, keeping their guns aimed at her as another guard clamped restraints on her wrists and ankles. On either side of her, a disgruntled Anubis and a seething Fenrir were getting the same treatment.

"Thank you gentlemen," Came the voice of Sunny Twill as he stepped forward to stand in front of the panel of screens below the wall of glass, "Now if you'll kindly _get out of my way_…" It was said in a dark and threatening tone. The guards stepped back against the wall, keeping their weapons trained on the three teenaged non-humans before them.

"What's going on!?" Anubis growled, making sure his lower fangs flashed in a threatening manner as he spoke, "What's wrong with Cerb!?"

"I don't know." Dr. Twill admitted, running a hand through his creamy hair, "Neither myself nor Mr. Blandsdale could figure out what was wrong with him. So I argued with Ron until he agreed to let me consult you three. You'll help, won't you?"

"Well, duh!" Fenrir snapped, bristling at the very idea of leaving Cerberus for dead.

"Alright then, follow me." Dr. Twill gestured and the three heirs followed him through a door and into the surprisingly hot room they'd seen on the opposite side of the glass.

Cerberus was stretched out on a medical bed, shaking slightly, sweat coating his forehead, the rest of him hidden under a mound of blankets. Anubis pricked his fan-like ears and heard shallow, ragged breathing.

"He's sick…" Seraphim whispered, solid jade eyes glowing with worry.

"Yes, but we don't know with what." Dr. Twill's hands were in his pockets, a frown creating a deep crease between his barely visible eyebrows, "It's not airborn, we know that, so it's safe to keep the room hot, his body temperature is so far below a healthy level he's in danger of _freezing_ to death from the inside out, we've done everything to warm him up and so far nothing's working, and he keeps trying to roll over! I just don't know what to do with him!"

Fenrir's neon blue eyes were blazing but with what was anyone's guess. His fists were clenched tightly in the bonds that held his wrists together and his jaw line was tense. He didn't want to talk to anyone. In fact, he rather looked like he wanted to punch someone. Preferably one of the staff. Preferably Swift.

Seraphim, on the other hand, was staring at Cerberus with worry and a slight hint of interest. She leaned over and whispered something in Anubis' ear. The Mipedian Prince perked up and looked around at his unconscious friend. His tail curled and uncurled in agitation. He had considered using his tail as a weapon many times; it was thick and scaly and could probably take out a few guards at a time but in that amount of time the remaining guards could probably have also shot his friends. Better not leave things to chance…

"Anything?" The albino man asked, looking from one to the other.

"It's probably…Frostblight." Anubis said.

"Frost…bite?" Twill said hesitantly.

"Frost_blight_." Seraphim corrected.

"It's an Und—it's a virus from where he comes from," Anubis picked up, his eyes never leaving Cerberus, "He lives in heat-oriented conditions; _really_ hot places; and this virus drains heat from the body. That's why he keeps trying to roll over on his stomach. His tribe lives under the earth, close to the core, and so to keep their vital organs warm they lay on their stomachs so the heat rising from the earth can warm them."

"Know-It-All." Seraphim muttered under her breath but Anubis ignored her. Dr. Twill was staring at him with his mouth hanging open in shock.

"S-so how do I…cure it?" He asked, finding his voice again.

"Unstrap Cerb first, let him lay on his stomach because that's natural." Anubis ordered with an authority in his voice neither Fenrir nor Seraphim had heard there before, "After that…I don't know…I can't…remember…" He squeezed his eyes shut as though by doing so he could pull the memory out from the depths of his mind, "I can't remember! I can't!"

"Easy, kid, no one's rushing you." Sunny said but jumped when Fenrir snarled at him.

"We're just another couple of zeroes on your paycheck!" The OverWorld Prince spat, "You could care less about what we want as long as we're alive and healthy enough to poke at!" Those burning blue eyes narrowed with hate, "You humans are all the same; you use and use and use until all of it is wasted away and then you toss it aside and search for something else to suck the life from! I _hate_ you!"

Dr. Twill was taken aback by the abruptness of the insult. He looked between the three non-humans. All of them looked back at him with anger and pain and a sick longing for home. It tugged at his heart strings. He shook his head with a frustrated sigh and signaled for the guards to come take the trio away.

"If you remember anything, tell me." He said to Anubis but the lizard-like boy only turned his nose up and allowed himself to be dragged out of the room. Sunny ruffle his hair agitatedly.

Who _were _these kids!?

-Area 51, Building 001: Conference Building, Conference Room A2-

"What did you want to talk to me about, Ilene?" Swift asked, crossing his arms as he took a seat at the polished wooden table, "In private?"

"Those four teenager aren't human." The Irish woman said.

"Obviously." Swift answered coldly. Ilene's eyes narrowed.

"And they are not extraterrestrial beings as Warrek would like to assume."

"How did you come to that conclusion?"

"The way they act," Ilene rested her arms on the tabletop, completely serious, "Is as though they are superior to everyone else around them. And the fact that they appeared out of nowhere with the most pathetic backstory I've ever heard…" Swift watched her talk, impassive, "And their names."

"Any extraterrestrial being intent upon invading Earth would study us long enough to know that we fear what we know but don't understand; such as the concept of all powerful beings like gods." Swift said, "It proves nothing."

"Ah, but," Ilene's expression was one that said she had thought of something Swift hadn't, "Ron, a _smart_ alien would "chose" gods from the same century, not to mention religion. These four…no, they're not aliens. I can _feel_ the power radiating off them life heat from the surface of an oven. Do you understand what that means!?"

"You…really believe they're gods." The note of hesitation in Swift's voice was enough to tell Ilene that the rock-solid Ronald Swift was beginning to wonder as well.

"Yes, I do. And…" She paused now, uncertain about whether she wanted to say it or not. It would sound so terribly cliché, "Ron, I think they're here to end the world."

Swift stared at her for a long time.

When he finally pulled himself together he stood and headed for the door, "Get the rest of the team in here. I think we all need to hear this theory of yours."

"Where are you going!?"

"To get some coffee…and some vodka."

-Area 51, Building 001: Conference Building, Conference Room A2, a while later-

"Alright, Ilene, what's this theory of yours?" Tax Tide sighed, resting her chin in her hands. Next to her, her brother lazily stirred a shot of vodka into his coffee.

"Those four teenagers—and this is _just_ a theory—I believe they are here to destroy the world. Or at least the entire human race."

This was met with an all around shocked silence.

Then Mira snorted and bit her lip. Ilene glared at her. Marc Poll shared a skeptic glance with Sunny and Warrek rubbed to fingers to his right temple, frowning.

"Explain how you…came up with this theory of yours." Terrion said slowly, in an almost mocking tone.

Ilene explained to them what she'd already told Swift and then continued by saying, "Now think about this carefully. Fenrir is one of the children of Loki, the Norse god of trickery. Legend states that he grew so quickly that normal chains were unable to bind him any longer and, because of his monstrous appetite, the other gods began to fear for Valhalla and Earth. So they bound Fenrir with a magical ribbon called Glepnir. However," Ilene looked at each member of the team individually, "It is said that Fenrir will one day escape this binding as well, eat the king of Norse gods, Odin, and bring about Ragnorak—the end of world."

"What's this have to do with the other three?" Mira asked, cynical in all but voice.

"Anubis is the Eygptian god of the dead, yes?" Ilene didn't wait for an answer, just plowed right on, "After Fenrir obliterates life as we know it, Anubis will be in charge of the wandering souls; he will dictate where they are to go. Seraphim will lead the good souls up, to Heaven, while Cerberus leads the bad ones down into Hell—or the Underworld, depending on your religion."

"A seraphim, if I recall correctly, is a six winged _angel_, Ilene." Marc pointed out coolly, "Our Seraphim is anything _but_ an angel. She looks more like an insect to me." There was a soft murmur of agreement.

"Well, of _course_!" Ilene snapped but cooled down at a withering look from Swift, "They couldn't exactly walk around in their original forms, could they? Everyone would see them for what they were! They disguised themselves as…as…_other_ beings and then hide that disguise under a human one."

"Then why reveal themselves? Why not just annihilate everything right from the get-go?" Warrek put in and this was met with a consensus of agreed wonderment.

"Perhaps…" Swift spoke for the first time, rubbing one hand over his chin as he though, "They are testing us. But why…I really can't say."  
The group mulled this over for a moment in silence and then Sunny said,

"So…we're dealing with gods, are we? Hm, this puts things in a more interesting light." He stood, "If this meeting is over, then I have a patient to get back to. If he really is sick, anyway." He walked out the door and Warrek followed close behind him.

Out in the hall, Warrek said in a low voice,

"Had a change of heart, Sunny?"

"Change of heart? Over what?" But there was a sly smile on the albino's face that said he knew exactly what Warrek was talking about.

"If we stopped these four, we could be heroes." Warrek grinned, nudging his companion in the side, "Part of the team that saved the world. Heh, heh!"

"But then you wouldn't have any peace on that ranch of yours." Sunny said.

"That's what plastic surgery is for, Sunny!"

The two men continued down the hall, their laughter bouncing down the empty tile stretch and ringing after they'd vanished around a corner.

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_Translations: Periculosus ut Vestri Valetudo – Hazardous to Your Health_

_FINALLY! I got it finished. I got stuck on this and that's why there's only this chapter. Sorry. _

_More Cerberus bashing! Shameless, shameless bashing. _

_And we have another mysterious scene with two voices…who could they belong to? Some people are getting really, really close to guessing who the voices belong to. I'm enjoying this. _

_Mmmmm, plot twists. X3_

_Anyway, thanks so much for reading, and for waiting for this update, even if it was only one chapter, and thanks for the wonderful reviews! Please stay tuned and please review! Reviews make it snow in the Mipedian Desert!_

………

_I don't even know how that's important. _


	18. Fugio

_I'm really, really sorry for only finishing one chapter before. This time I intend to make it more! So hold on to your hats, people! It's gonna get dicey! _

_Oh, yeah, and if I got any of the attack names wrong not my fault. Sort of. I have a limited amount of references that I'm using so I kind of have to go on memory for some of them. Please don't give me a hard time if they're wrong.

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**Fugio

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-Area 51, Building 003: Study Quarters, Subject 047's Room-

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Anubis was furious.

He could never remember being this angry in his entire life.

He sulked in his room, sitting cross-legged on top of his pathetic excuse for a bed, and smashed his tail against the wall repeatedly, trying to be annoying.

To no avail, it seemed because he'd been at it for almost an hour and no one had come to shut him up.

Anubis relented and curled his tail around his waist, end twitching in his lap.

He was angry.

And upset.

He'd been lying when he'd said he didn't know how to cure Cerberus.

He knew how it was just impossible to do it.

Impossible because the cure was back at home, in Perim. But he couldn't say that to those humans, it would ruin everything. Anubis screamed in frustration and raked his bronze claws down the walls, tearing paint and drywall. He scored claw mark after claw mark up and down his room but it didn't help anything.

He was still trapped in this room, in the Human Realm.

And Cerberus was still slowing dying a whole other building away.

-Area 51, Building 003: Study Quarters, Subject 046's Room-

Fenrir was handling the situation no better.

In his ferocious wrath, he'd managed to rip up one of the chairs from where it had been bolted to the floor and throw it into the wall. It had clanged against the wall, leaving a good sized dent, and then crashed to the floor.

Still flushed with rage, he'd moved to the small table and that had gone flying to smash against the door. He'd grabbed it again and swung it as hard as he could against the same door only to have one of the legs snap off. He'd tried again with the same result.

Frustrated and seething, the OverWorld Prince advanced on the only remaining piece of furniture.

The bed.

Bolting down the furnishings did little to stop a rampaging Creature.

The bed met an untimely end against the floor, nearly bent in half when he was finished with it. But Fenrir wasn't sated; he boiled with power and hatred, energy-blazing blue eyes darting around the room to find something else to destroy. His head started hurting and he could hear the blood pounding in his ears. Maybe it was all that power building up inside him…

"_**What about the door frame…?"**_ A cold voice whispered in the back of his mind. Fenrir looked around at the door, _**"I bet you could tear that right off…and then the wall…and then the door itself…and then you'd be free."**_

What a clever idea.

Fenrir chuckled darkly and strolled over to the door. He gripped the edge of the frame, gritted his teeth, and pulled. It took a few tries but finally there was the satisfying crackling-pop of dislodged steel from drywall. Fenrir pulled even harder,

"GRRRRAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

There was a noisy wrenching sound and one whole side of the steel door frame came loose in his hand. A shower of white drywall dust poofed into the air. Fenrir hooted triumphantly and started smashing the steel beam against the wall. Cracks spread, white dust covered everything. Fenrir went into a frenzy, not even realizing that he was now hitting metal on metal instead of metal on drywall.

Then he froze.

The locks were hissing and clicking in the door which meant that _someone_ wasn't very happy with the idea of him trashing the room.

The door opened a fraction and the barrel of a gun poked through. Fenrir dropped the steel door frame to the floor and grabbed the gun. He jerked it towards him while leaning on the door, pulling the gun through and making its unfortunate wielder smash his head against the heavy door. A hand appeared and Fenrir threw his weight against the door. He was reward with a scream of pain and a crunch of bones.

Someone on the opposite side slammed into the door and Fenrir went sprawling to the floor. He rolled over and pulled the trigger of the gun in his hand, aiming at the first guard who burst through the door. A tranquilizer dart hit the man's helmet and ricocheted off uselessly. Fenrir swore colorfully and leapt to his feet, swinging the gun around by its barrel to knock the guard in the head and send him flying.

Fenrir dropped the gun and jumped, spinning in mid air to kick the next man in the chest. He used that same momentum to roundhouse—still in the air—and smash another guard into his fellow, sending them both to the floor. He flung his weight forward before he landed and his hands closed around a man's throat. His energy carried him up and over the man and there was a sickening crack as the man hit the floor and Fenrir's body weight pressed down on his neck and then released.

The OverWorld Prince ran down the hall, screaming at the top of his lungs. Vowing revenge.

-Area 51, Building 003: Study Quarters, Subject 047's Room-

Anubis' sensitive ears pricked as he heard a slight commotion coming through his walls. But he paid it little heed. He'd torn through the drywall in his room until his claws had raised sparks on the steel beneath and now he was left brooding in a corner with nothing to do.

Mipedians weren't know so much for their strength as their speed and skill with Mugic. Not to mention their desert surviving talents and invisibility—.

Invisibility!

Anubis grinned.

That was his ticket out of here.

If he could remember how to do it.

-Area 51, Building 003: Study Quarters, Observation Room-

"What the hell is going on out there!?" Swift slammed a hand on the control panel, cheeks blotted with red in his unbridled and unhidden fury, "First that Fenrir thing escapes and now that other one has vanished from its room without a trace! I want to know what's going!" He rounded on his team, "Somebody tell me what's happening!"

"Fenrir was destroying his room so you ordered some men to go sedate him." Marc said in a strained voice, "Which they attempted to do. During the process, Fenrir overpowered them and is currently rampaging down the halls presumably looking for an exit. All efforts to stop him have thus far been met unsuccessfully. As for Anubis…I'm afraid I have no idea, sir."

"Uh-oh." Mira said and everyone looked around at the German electrician, "We're losing video." Screen after screen was blinking into static. Mira frantically tapped away at the keyboard but it was of little use. The last screen to go out showed the sneering face of Anubis as he destroyed the fuse box for the cameras that covered every inch of Area 51.

Swift audibly ground his teeth.

This did not bode well.

-Area 51, Building 003: Study Quarters, Hallway-

Fenrir roared a challenge as he knocked another guard head over heels and sent him crashing into the wall. There was a click from behind him and he ducked just in time to avoid getting nailed with sedative darts. He whirled around and bared his teeth in an animalistic way at the group of guards who'd been trying to sneak up on him.

Unfortunately, he was just posturing.

On the inside, the OverWorld Prince was exhausted. He'd been fighting and fighting and fighting and didn't know how much more he could take. If only he could tap into that veritable ocean of power that lay inside of him. If only he could unleash it upon those sorry dastards who were getting in his way, stopping him from saving his friends.

The guards cocked their rifles again and aimed. Fenrir took a deep breath and got ready to dodge.

A scream from the back of the ranks made the guards look around and Fenrir stand curiously on his tip toes.

His eyes widened and he tried to bolt.

Too late.

The thunderous wave of water rolled up and over the walls, consumed the guards, and swept Fenrir up in its wake. He spun in the currents, unable to tell which way he way going, arms flailing wildly, legs kicking uselessly, lungs fit to burst. Something slammed into his back and he was pinned against what he supposed was a wall. The water rushed by him, tearing at the white shirt and pants that were all he had. And then it was gone and he slid down the wall, viewing the hallway from upside down, panting and gasping as cool air rushed back into his lungs.

There was a strange noise rather like reality itself had been displaced (that was the only way Fenrir could think to describe it) and suddenly Anubis was standing there, looking baffled and a little conceited. His emerald eyes glittered with happiness when he saw Fenrir and he bounded forward to help his companion to his feet.

"Sorry about that, Fenrir! I don't remember how to control it yet!"

"How'd you do that…that…whatever it was!?" Fenrir stared around at the stunned or dead guards, "That was _amazing_! It was like someone dumped the ocean down the hall!"

"It's called Rip Tide. I think." Anubis said, ears flicking back and forth, "And I don't exactly know how I did it. I was just sitting in my room thinking about how my Invisibility would be really useful and the next thing I know some guards run in looking panicked and talking about trying to find me. I realized I must have turned invisible so I snuck out and was trying to find you and Seraphim when I saw those guards ganging up on you. I did the first thing that popped into my head. I stuck my hand out and said—."

"Look out!" Fenrir grabbed Anubis and hauled him out of the way, both Creatures slamming into the cold tile floor as at least fifteen darts clattered uselessly off the wall they'd just been standing in front of.

Fifteen armed guards stomped their way towards them. Fenrir let out a frustrated snarl and something snapped in his mind. He thrust out the hand that wasn't pinned underneath him and shouted in a voice ringing with power,

"VINE SNARE!"

-Area 51, Building 003: Study Quarters, Subject 048's Room-

Seraphim lay on her stomach on her bed, feeling absolutely miserable.

Cerberus was sick and possibly dying, they were locked in this government hideaway with little chance of escaping, getting back home seemed hopeless, and her feelings about Fenrir were completely confused.

She frowned.

Since when had Fenrir been a factor in any of it.

She'd liked him as Tom because she hadn't known any better, hadn't remembered that they were from different tribes. But now that they were as they should have been—Creatures, not humans—she was at a complete loss for what to do.

Back at the Academy, Peyton (Anubis) had had a crush on her as Sarah and Tom (Fenrir) had too but had his ego and pride were too big for him to admit it. She, Seraphim as Sarah, had also liked Tom (Fenrir) a lot but was waiting for him to approach her. And he had after a few follies and disagreements. But too late for anything good to happen.

Seraphim sighed and put her face into her pillow.

This was stupid. She should be thinking about a way to escape, not about a melancholic-better-left-forgotten love life.

Her antennae twitched, her body tingled with power, and she looked up. Someone was fighting. Someone with power. She sat upright and faced the door. A loud bang made her jump. Muffled shouting followed. Seraphim's eyes narrowed; something was going on.

With a sudden ripping-crunch, the heavy, steel door was torn from its frame and dashed against one of the walls of her room. Through the cloud of drywall dust the drifted down slowly, she could make out two familiar figures.

"Anubis! Fenrir!" She got and ran towards them, tackling them both in an enormous hug, "How in the name of the Hive did you do that!?"

"Flash Kick." Fenrir said proudly.

"Sure, sure, okay, whatever!" She turned her back on them, "Get these straps off my wings before I go stir crazy!"

Anubis raised a bronze claw and sliced through the leather bonds and Seraphim flared her dragonfly wings. She beat them once, twice, and on the third time sent them buzzing and rose into the air.

"Come on! We gotta get to Cerb!" Anubis shouted as she looped over the ceiling and touched down again.

"Where is he anyway?" Fenrir asked. The other two looked at him, "What!? Just because I busted out doesn't mean I know where I'm going!"

"You're useless." Seraphim muttered but she was smiling, "I've grown up in dark tunnels my whole life, I can find my way back there. You can't trick a Danian that easily."

"Unless it's Wamma." Anubis said under his breath, too low for the Danian Princess to hear.

-Unknown location, somewhere in the Northern United States?-

The young man's breath formed into small puffs of fog as he pushed aside a low hanging pine tree branch that was laden with snow. The silence was so thick it pressed against his eardrums and made him want to scream into the forest just to stop himself from going insane from the quiet.

But he couldn't make a sound.

He couldn't let his presence be known until the last possible second. It was vital that he free the heirs in their time of utmost need in order to build trust. Trust that would make them follow him back to Perim, trust that would make them follow him to the depths of darkest part of their world, and trust that would hand him the Catalyst on a silver platter.

-Area 51, Building 004: Medical Labs, Emergency Medical Wing-

Flames licked the glass walls of the connecting tunnel that led from one building to the next. Anubis turned his back on the flickering lights and raced after his companions. All of them were scraped, bruised, and smeared with ash but alive. The guards that rose before them fell quickly and met untimely ends. They destroyed anything and everyone who stood in their path, on a track of vengeance.

"Here." Seraphim pointed at a heavy steel door emblazed with a red cross. Fenrir nudged her aside and held out a hand.

"Rust Toxic!"

The metal creaked and groaned as its silver sheen was tainted a corroded red-brown. Seraphim gave the ruined door and almighty kick and it buckled with a screech of ruined metal.

"Cerberuuuusssssss!" Fenrir bounded past her and smashed through the glass barrier, showing shards of dangerous edges everywhere.

"Anubis, barricade the door somehow!" Seraphim ordered as they followed the OverWorld Prince inside, "We've got to figure out how to get Cerberus out of here safely!"

"Right!" The Mipedian Prince leapt into action as Seraphim spun back to face Fenrir. He was tearing the leather straps holding down his friend to shreds. She ran to his side.

"Fenrir, what're we going to do!?"

"What do you mean?" He paused long enough to cast a glance at her and then went on with his work.

"We're going to have this whole place chasing after us—scratch that. We _do_ have this whole place chasing after us and Cerberus is unconscious!" She buzzed her wings agitatedly, "Face it! We're stuck! We can't protect Cerberus and fight off guards at the same time! We're not strong enough! We don't remember enough!"

Fenrir looked upset. He ground his teeth and his blue eyes flicked over the room like they would give him the answers to the rut they'd found themselves in. When nothing came to him, he roared in anger and smashed his fists into the side of the bed, jostling Cerberus' limp form.

Seraphim opened her mouth to offer some empty words of comfort when the entire building rumbled and sent them to their knees.

"What in the name of the Goddess was _that_!?" Anubis shouted, getting to his feet, "An earthquake!?"

Another rumble, this time shaking dust from the ceiling. Anubis dived under a still upright table and put his hands over his head. Another shake. Cerberus rolled over and slammed to the floor. He groaned loudly but made no move to the conscious side of reality. Seraphim dropped down before another rumble could shake her down and pulled his head into her lap. She wasn't exactly sure how comfortable that was—Danian armor was pretty tough stuff—but at least he wouldn't be flopping around on the floor. Fenrir tried to remain standing and was slammed into a wall for his efforts.

Then, with a sudden, ringing crash, the barricade Anubis had set up against the ruined door was blasted inward. A large metal table spun across the room and nearly clocked Fenrir in the head. Seraphim swore colorfully and stood, gently laying Cerberus on the floor. If they were going to fight, she wasn't going to do it on her knees. Anubis slithered out from underneath the table and he and Fenrir stood on either side of the Danian Princess. There would be blood shed in this fight, without a doubt.

But the person who came through the door was not a guard nor one of the scientists. It was a young man who looked to by maybe in his late twenties or early thirties. His skin was dark and he was bald but his eyes shone an odd iridescent purple-blue. He was dressed in a loose wool sweater and faded jeans from which he was currently dusting off bits of drywall and paint flakes. As he straightened, he caught sight of the heirs standing there, fight ready, and his mouth split his face in a wide grin, showing almost all off his teeth.

"At last, I have found you!" There was an odd accent to his voice that none of them could place, "You are the missing Princes and Princess, are you not?"

"What?" Anubis said.

"No! No time to talk!" The man brushed past them and scooped up Cerberus, carrying him easily over his shoulder as though the UnderWorld Prince weighed no more than a stack of paper, "We must move now! I do not know how long my disruptions will distract the guards! Come! Come!" And he leapt away with inhuman speed.

Fenrir, Seraphim, and Anubis ran after him. The man led them back the way they'd come and then, unexpectedly, he spun on his heel and dashed through a hole in the wall. The others nimbly followed him through the gaping gape and into the blinding white snow and cold. Anubis started shivering and soon started lagging behind. He was a desert Creature.

"Keep running!" The man called over the shoulder that wasn't occupied by Cerberus, "It'll keep you warm! We are almost to the fence!" Even as the words left his mouth in a puff of frosted crystals, a mangled mess of twisted wire and barbs loomed up ahead. What had once been a fence now lay in two halves, creating a perfect exit. They ran through and vanished into the silence of the forest.

The further away they got from the burning buildings behind them, the deeper the snow got and the harder the going got. Fenrir helped Anubis along while Seraphim hovered behind, covering their tracks as best she could. The man would plow through the snow like it was nobody's business, wait for them to catch up, and then move ahead only to wait for them once more.

Finally, exhausted and shivering, they stopped in a circle of trees that had been cleared of snow with a dead fire pit in the middle. Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim collapsed against a fallen, slightly sodden, log with sighs. The man went about building a fire and, once it was built, he positioned Cerberus next to it to keep the UnderWorlder as warm as he could.

"Thanks," Fenrir said, rubbing his numb toes to try and warm them back up, "For saving us, I mean."

"Yeah, we were kind of…screwed." Anubis added with a half-smile.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, thank you, we're grateful, blah, blah, and all that." Seraphim's eyes glared at the man, "Now who are you."

The man sat back on the damp earth and crossed his legs. Then he tugged his sweater over his head and laid it across Cerberus' back (the Prince was on his stomach again) to add what little warmth he could. The man was more muscular than he had first appeared and the three heirs could see the defined lines of his abdominal muscles flexing as he stretched his arms up as high as they would go and swung them back down to rest in his lap. He looked at them all with a blank expression.

"Well," Fenrir urged, "Who are you?"

"You are…Prince Fenrir, the OverWorld Prince." It was not a question, "And Princess Seraphim and Prince Anubis and…poor Prince Cerberus has Frostblight. We will have to cure that upon our return to Perim."

"Perim!?" It was shout of longing and disbelief and hope that came from the trio sitting against the log.

The man smiled and it looked like his mouth covered most of his face. But the smile didn't reach his eyes,

"Yes, Perim. I have been looking for you four for a very long time. I have come to take you back to Perim, to where you belong." He placed a hand on his broad chest, "My name…is Phelphor."

* * *

_Translations: Fugio – Run Away_

_I'm just sitting here grinning right now. Grinning like an idiot because I finally got to reveal him. This is exciting. Or maybe I just think it's exciting because it's 11:53 pm and the sun burn I got from Cedar Point is itching like crazy. In any case…_

_I can't wait to see your guys' reaction to this. I think some of you figured out it was Phelphor, or at least that the M'arillians were involved somehow, but I still can't wait to see how you take this. Maybe you can guess what they're planning? Phelphor's being _awfully_ friendly… Heh, heh, heh… X3_

_I did get stuck on this a couple of times. Okay, a lot of times, but I finished it up in the end (obviously). _

_Yeeeeaaaaa! They got their powers back! Whoo-hoo! _

_Alright peoples, I just got one request: please review this chapter before reading the next one! I _really, really, really_ want to see your reactions to the revelation of Phelphor! Thanks a ton, guys, you all rock!_

_Well, that's it for now! Please stick around for more updates, I'll try to get them up as fast as I can! Thanks for reading and for all those wonderful reviews! They really mean a lot to me! (hugs everyone who reviews) Feedback is awesome! Feedback is like…is like…well, actually, I don't have an analogy. So I'll just say this:_

_Please review! Reviews bring more chapters and send Writer's Block to an alternate timeline where it's _DEAD_! Mwahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaa! _


	19. A Universitas of Jugis Bellum

_I need more things to watch while I'm working on my college portfolio. I just watched the two YGO DVDs I own. I wish I had the original uncut stuff. 4Kids was all "yeah, we're releasing the original uncut in America." Bull you are. I haven't seen it anywhere! Probably have to buy it online… XP

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_

**A Universitas of Jugis Bellum

* * *

**

-Unknown location somewhere in the Northern United States?-

"Perim…" Anubis whispered, breath frosting thickly in the chill air, "I never thought…Perim…home…"

"Wait a second, there was a war going on when we left." Seraphim interjected, squishing the happy, floaty feeling the other two had been enjoying, "Is it over? Who won? What happened?"

"Easy now, easy." Phelphor raised his hands to ward off her demanding questions, "Here is not the best place to explain." He glanced around the clearing and then looked back at them, "Are you recovered enough to enter Chaotic?"

"You have to ask?" Seraphim snapped.

"Totally." Anubis replied.

Fenrir simply snorted and crossed his arms over his chest.

Phelphor smiled that gigantic smile of his and then knelt over Cerberus. After a quick glance at the heirs, he fished something out of his pants pocket and held it in the palm of his hand. His frame quivered and glowed with an unearthly light. Suddenly, music like the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra was sitting beside them flooded the clearing. Light blazed from nowhere and settled on Cerberus' still form. After a moment, it faded. No one said a word.

Cerberus shifted, groaned, took a deep breath, and opened his eyes. He sat up, rubbing them tiredly, and looked about. Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim shouted in glee and tackled him in a giant hug.

"Wh-what!? Guys! Hey, what's going on!? G-guys, come on! Who's this!?" Cerberus' managed to wriggle away from his companions and ran his clawed fingers through his hair, getting it to stand straight up again. His tail curled around in the dirt, agitated and worried.

The three of them gave the UnderWorld Prince a quick rundown of what he had missed and then gave him another round of hugs. Cerberus eyed Phelphor warily for a few moments then nodded his approval with a large smile. Phelphor returned the smile with a slight incline of his head then, using the toe of his boot, he etched symbols and letters into the sodden dirt.

"Come here." He said and the four heirs moved to stand beside him. He gave off no heat but rather radiated a chill like waters of a black and murky lake. Fenrir's spine tingled and he shivered but passed it off as simply a winter's chill, "Stand still, do not move, do not speak, do not disturb me in any way, shape, or form."

Phelphor's expression became one of serious concentration and he began chanting in the true language of Perim, the words sparking with power. His eyes glowed bright gold, light spilling from them eerily. Anubis felt dizzy as he stared at them and blinked, looking away. His head felt fuzzy. What was that about?

There was a tug and then, with a noise like water going down a drain, they vanished.

-Chaotic-

It was dark and stank of death and dust.

Fenrir couldn't understand what had happened. He'd felt the cold, the hard, frozen earth beneath his feet, smelled the sharp scent of winter pine trees, and then nothing. Now cold cement dug into his heels, darkness pressed against his eyes, and the warmth wrapped him in a warm blanket.

"Wh-where are we!?" He heard Cerberus stutter, "I thought you said we were going to Chaotic!"

"We are _in_ Chaotic." Phelphor responded tensely, "But it will not be the Chaotic you remember. Two years after your departure to the Human Realm…Iparu was murdered."

"Iparu? What's an Iparu?" Anubis asked from somewhere to Fenrir's right.

"Ah, yes, you know him as Elliot." Phelphor replied in the same tense voice.

"Elliot…Elliot was…no way…" Fenrir murmured softly though if anyone heard him he didn't know.

"I'm afraid so." Phelphor said, "But we don't have time to stand around and talk, we all must get to a safer location before _they_ arrive."

"They?" Seraphim echoed, "Who's they?"

Light sparkled to life with a click and a buzz and Phelphor was suddenly illuminated by a beam of yellow-white coming from the flashlight in his massive hand. He handed it off to Fenrir and beckoned for them to follow. They carefully picked their way through piles of ash, overturned file cabinets, ruined furniture, and pages torn from countless books. It was a graveyard of Elliot's legacy. Anubis swallowed thickly, feeling a lump settle in his throat.

"Phelphor, answer me." Seraphim demanded, "Who are you talking about? Who's they?"

Phelphor glanced over his shoulder and his peculiar eyes caught the light, reflecting light so that they looked like silver-violet plates of mirror in his face. It gave him an almost animalistic appearance.

"They," He whispered, "Are the M'arrilians. And you would do well not to cross their path. They have reformed Perim and have taken over most of it. The tribes have banded together and hidden themselves from the M'arrilians. I can take you to their base where you will be safest. Come now, quickly."

"Say, Phelphor," Fenrir nimbly crawled over a dented file cabinet, the flashlight beam swinging wildly for a brief moment or two, "What tribe are you from?"

"Here we are." Phelphor ignored Fenrir's question and pressed his hand against the wall, a white outline appeared in the shape of a door and swung outwards. They stepped through in the Gate. It was silent and dim, no longer glowing with its white tone of serenity. When they walked through, no silver bell sound twinkled through the air. It was almost as if the Gate was dying. Seraphim hugged herself and stepped closer to Fenrir, shoulders aching with desire to fly away.

Something didn't seem right.

They crossed through the Gate and into Perim.

There was a clatter and a tinkling of shattered glass. Fenrir had dropped the flashlight. Nobody could blame him. This wasn't the Perim they remembered.

"Welcome to the OverWorld." Phelphor muttered flatly, "Or, more accurately, what's left of it."

It was a wasteland.

What had once been an expanse of lush and mighty forests and luxuriant grassy plains was now a badland of rocks, dust, skeletons of dead trees, and pools of stinking, tainted water that oozed and like masses of green and brown slime. The sky was overcast with heavy gray clouds, no sign of the sun or a blue sky could be seen and it didn't look as through the clouds were going to break any time soon.

"Where's…Kiru City?" Anubis managed to ask.

"Fallen." Phelphor replied flatly.

Fenrir dropped to his knees, dirt and dust, disturbed by his movement, swirling into the air and dissipating into the greyness surrounding them.

It couldn't be. This couldn't be his home. Not his home. Never his home. It wasn't right. Not the OverWorld. Never the OverWorld. Never Maxxor. Never his father. Never—.

"_See you when I get back!"_

"GGGRRRAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Fenrir screamed, voice echoing over the empty expanse of rock and waste laid out before them, and slammed his fists into the earth over and over again. Flecks of red flew into the air as he beat the ground, tears streamed down his face, his frame shook, and he could only scream wordless cries of sorrow.

"Stop." Phelphor grabbed one of Fenrir's wrists, "You're blood is too precious to waste."

Fenrir wrenched himself away from the other Creature, who had somehow remained in his human Glamour, and buried his face in his hands. Small trickles of blood ran from the cuts on his hands but he paid them no heed. The pain on the inside was far greater than the ones on the surface.

"Come on, Fenrir, you can't quit." Cerberus crouched down and hauled the OverWorld Prince upright, "I mean, you're the strongest one out of all of us. If you give up, what're we supposed to do?" Shimmering blue eyes gazed at him, "It's gonna…we'll…this isn't over. We'll find our parents and…and we'll get back at these M'arrilians. 'K?"

Fenrir swallowed several times, ran his arm across his eyes, and then nodded once, not trusting himself to speak.

"We must keep moving, it is dangerous to linger in one place too long." Phelphor set off down the slope and the other followed. Seraphim walked beside Fenrir, whispering words of comfort, and Cerberus dropped back to walk with Anubis.

"You okay, Cerb?" The Mipedian Prince asked quietly. Cerberus shook his head, staring at the ground, "What's wrong?"

"I'm worried about my own home, the UnderWorld." The Prince confessed, brown eyes shimmering in the gloom, "And my head's been hurting since we left the Gate. I don't feel very well at all."

"After effects of Frostblight?"

Cerberus shrugged, still looking at the ground, "There's…something else."

"What?"

"I don't trust him." He flicked his chocolate eyes to Phelphor's back and, for a second, they flashed crimson.

"Why not?" Anubis dropped his voice to a low whisper.

"His manner. The way he acts. And why is he still wearing his Glamour?" Cerberus replied in an equally low voice. Then he snorted, wrinkling his nose, "I don't like the way he smells either; like death, briny water, and mildew."

"Hmm…" Anubis made a noise of acknowledgement but said nothing else. In truth, Phelphor's presence was enough to make the Mipedian's skin crawl and the look in the Creature's eyes was almost hungry. But where else could they go? Besides, Phelphor had rescued them from the humans and healed Cerberus. Maybe he was just one of those weird Creatures that seemed bad but really wasn't; like that OverWorlder, Hifdan.

The trek was hard, especially on Fenrir. The four heirs were exhausted and hungry but Phelphor didn't allow them to stop. Every time they tried, he'd urge them back up on their feet and remind them that the M'arrilians were still out and about. He told them what these devastating Creatures were capable of, horror stories of what they had done and could still do.

"They can reach into your mind," He said as they clambered over piles of fallen trees, "And pluck out thoughts from your head. And if you aren't strong enough, they can control your mind and make you do things you would never want to do."

"They have mind control!?" Cerberus whispered frightfully, eyes wide. The hair on his back bristled with fear.

"Yes but you needn't worry," Phelphor grabbed a giant log in his hands and hefted it easily out of the way before dusting off dirt from this pants, "They cannot mind control those with _regius crour_ such as yourselves."

"Regis…what?" Anubis stuttered, vaulting easily over a series of criss-crossing trees.

"_Regius crour_," Cerberus said and Phelphor's head snapped around to look at him, eyes bright with alertness, "It means royal blood. So the M'arrilians can't control nobility?"

"That is…correct." Phelphor said slowly, turning back to lead the way, "For a time, though, they had Lord Van Bloot under their control."

"Van Bloot?" Fenrir said, an edge to his voice, "But I thought he was royalty."

"He isn't." Cerberus put in, scowling, "He acts like he is but he's not. He'd turn traitor on my father without a second thought."

"Indeed, that was how the M'arrilians managed to gain a foothold in his mind. He sought power," Phelphor climbed over the last of the trees, "And willing let the M'arrilians invade his mind. But when he realized what was happening, he revolted and broke their hold over him. His whereabouts now are currently unknown."

Seraphim, who'd been flying above them, dropped down to earth in a flurry of dust and ashes,

"Phelphor, why don't you drop your Glamour?"

Everyone stopped moving and stared at their guide. Phelphor shifted uneasily and licked his lips.

"I did not drop my Glamour because…I…fear my appearance would not…be suitable for the eyes of royalty such as yourselves." The way he said it made them think he was embarrassed, "I know there are Creatures far more—how shall I put this?—grotesque than myself but I am rather…sensitive when it comes to appearing before royalty."

"I'm a fat lizard." Anubis said and the other three snickered, "What're you so worried about?"

Phelphor blinked at them all for a couple of seconds and then sighed, "As you wish." His human form shorted and became wider, his eyes were larger, and his neck all but disappeared into his shoulders. What remained was a slightly squat Creature with burgundy colored skin, large violet eyes, a wide mouth full of jagged teeth, and an even stronger smell of fish and brackish water.

"You don't look _that_ bad." Seraphim said, crossing her arms, "Really, I've seen worse."

"I believe I will take that as a compliment." Phelphor said sourly, "Now come. We have dilly-dallied too long here." He cast his eyes towards the gray sky, "The M'arrilians could come down on us at any moment. We must hurry!" And he set off at a far more grueling pace than he'd first had.

"You had to comment." Anubis muttered and then winced as Seraphim kicked him in the shin.

"You had to open your mouth." Cerberus snickered under his breath as the Mipedian fell back to walk beside him.

"Oh, like you never said something stupid and got hit by a girl for it." Anubis scoffed, "You're as bad as me when it comes to—Cerb, you okay? Hey, dude, Perim to Cerberus!"

But Cerberus was staring off to his right with huge eyes.

"The…UnderWorld…" He murmured and suddenly raced off, jumping rocks and dodging natural pillars of stone.

"No! Wait! Don't go that way!" Phelphor shouted, turning to run after him, "The M'arrilians patrol that entrance! Come back!"

But Cerberus paid him no heed as he disappeared into the UnderWorld entrance. The other followed but he had a lead that made it difficult to follow him.

"Cerberuuuuussssss!" Fenrir shouted, putting on a burst of speed, "Come baaaaaaaa—WHOA!" He dug his heels into the stone, skidding across the ground, and tripped over himself in an effort to stop. He flipped, head-over-heels, and slammed face first into the rock with a grunt of pain. Anubis and Seraphim reached him and helped him up. Phelphor came up behind, panting and out of breath.

Cerberus was standing stock still only a few feet away, ridged with shock, the hair on his back bristling.

"Cerberus?" Seraphim said in a low voice but got response.

"How did this…happen?" Anubis' voice cracked and he fought to keep it steady, "How could one tribe…do all of this?"

What had once been the outskirts of a thriving, bustling city was now a mountain of rubble and brown stains of old blood. It was almost pitch black, only the glowing fungi that grew in small patches in some places lit the way, but the group didn't need to see to know there was little left of the once proud UnderWorld City. Silence and death hung in the air like smog.

No one said anything.

Cerberus swayed on his feet, distraught. This couldn't be right. He must have mistaken this UnderWorld entrance for another one. This must be one of the abandoned out-towns. It had to be. At least, that's what he was trying to convince himself. And little good it did. Since he learned to walk, Cerberus had explored every inch of the UnderWorld and knew every nook and cranny, every secret passage, and every entrance and exit by heart. He could find his way around with his eyes closed.

"Dad…" He whispered. And then, "FATHER!" And he ran off again.

"Cerberus!"

"Cerb!"

"Prince!" Phelphor rounded on Fenrir, "Go! Stop him before he wanders too far!"

"What're you going to do?"

"I will guard this place with the Prince and Princess! Go! You must stop him!"

Fenrir rolled his eyes but spun on his heel and bolted. The ruins flashed by but every so often he had to slow down to scramble over an obstacle or duck under some low hanging debris. He could just see the spot of crimson and black up ahead that was Cerberus, deftly making his way through the devastated streets that he knew so well.

"Cerberus! Cerberus, come back! Phelphor said it's too dangerous to go off on your own!" Fenrir spun and a Flash Kick flared in the gloom, shattering some stone pillars that lay in his path, "Cerberus! There might still be M'arrilians around! Get back here! Cerberus!"

The OverWorlder stopped dead in his tracks, looking around. He stood in the middle of what had once been an intersection of streets and was now a maze of crumbled passages. And he'd lost sight of Cerberus.

"Cerberus!?" No one answered. He took a deep breath and was about to shout again when a heart-wrenching scream of anguish made him jump a foot in the air and run down the crumbling street to his left, "Cerberus! Cerber—there you are! Come on, we've gotta get back! Phelphor said there could still be M'arrilians wandering around down here and we can't let them catch us. Come on. Hey, Cerberus, you with me? Cerberus?"

But the UnderWorlder Prince was on his knees on the stone, shoulders hunched, shaking with sobs, molten tears streaming down his face and hissing as they hit the rock. In front of him was a giant pile of rubble.

"Cerberus?"

"My…home…" Cerberus choked out, short of breath and voice hitching as he cried, "R-ruins…all g-g-gone! Everyone…gone! N-n-not…f-f-fair…it's not!" He doubled over, burying his face in his arms, sobbing, his cries echoing through the silent UnderWorld.

Fenrir, not knowing what else to do, crouched down beside his best friend and hauled him upright. Cerberus leaned against Fenrir, sobbing, and the OverWorlder winced slightly as those hot tears seared his skin.

"Come on, Cerberus. We should get back." Fenrir said softly, "Anubis and Seraphim are waiting for us."

"D-doesn't m-m-matter!" Cerberus moaned, "All of it's g-g-gone!"

"They're _not_ gone!" Fenrir shouted, grabbing Cerberus' shoulders and forcing the UnderWorlder to look him right in the eye. The gleaming, metallic tears had caused the Prince's eyes to look silvery and red at the same time, like rubies encased in molten glass, "Phelphor said that all the tribes had banded together and were hiding out and he was going to take us to them! So your dad and my dad and Anubis' dad and Seraphim's…mom are gonna be there and we'll all see each other again and it'll be great so we can't give and we can't stop because if we do then we'll never see them again! Okay!?" Fenrir's eyes were hot and there were a few stray tears had trickled down his cheeks, "We gotta…keep moving…gotta…keep…going…"

Cerberus stared at Fenrir with a blank expression for a moment or two and then burst out laughing, wiping the smoking tears from his cheeks.

"That's the corniest thing I've ever heard!" He said, "But you're right. Our families are waiting for us."

"Uh, you lead." Fenrir gestured hopelessly, "I have no idea where I'm going."

-Perim, the OverWorld, UnderWorld Entrance No. 8: Path to the Great Caverns-

"Why're we going back into the UnderWorld?" Seraphim asked as the heirs followed Phelphor down a winding tunnel, "Didn't we just come from there, like, three hours ago?"

"It is safer to travel through the OverWorld," Phelphor said with annoyance and impatience straining his voice, "The M'arrilians scout the UnderWorld tunnels often. And it is easier to see them coming in the OverWorld."

"What part of the UnderWorld is this, anyway?" Anubis' fanned ears twitched but he could only hear the sound of their own breathing and footsteps.

"The Great Caverns." Cerberus answered, his eyes reflecting what little light there was, "They're a maze of corridors and dead ends, if you don't know your way around you can get lost and die easily. But," He yawned suddenly, "Ah, sorry. But at the bottom of this tunnel, the path splits. You can either head into the Great Caverns or take the passageway that will lead to the Doors of the Deep Mines. Cerberus shrugged, "There's nothing there, though. Just a giant set of doors that nobody can get open. There's supposed to be something dangerous behind them but that's just a bunch of stories that no one believes. Fairy tales."

Up ahead, Phelphor started laughing. Fenrir glanced at Seraphim who shrugged.

"Uh, Phel, you okay?" Anubis had already given the older Creature a nickname.

"I'm sorry," Phelphor murmured as they neared the end of the tunnel, "But your banter is quite…amusing." He grinned, showing all of his jagged teeth.

"Amusing?" Cerberus asked but got no response, "Hey! Wait, Phelphor, where are you going?" But Phelphor didn't answer; he just turned off to his right and into the tunnel that lead to the Doors of the Deep Mines. The heirs had no choice but to follow.

"Maybe the tribes got the Doors open and are hiding out in there." Seraphim said, "It's a pretty good strategic place. I mean, if they get attacked they can go into the Great Caverns, right?"

"Sure…" Cerberus replied but he sounded doubtful.

The four-some burst into a domed, high ceiling chamber and found themselves in knee deep, grayish water. Light from polished stones that glowed an unearthly blue reflected off the surface, casting everything into light that made it seem as though it were under water. Across the room, against the far wall, was a giant set of obsidian and silver doors with two, giant, hooded guardians carved of stone on either side of it, forever frozen to the stone wall they were made from.

And the doors were wide open.

Beyond, the heirs could see nothing for a veil of darkness cast itself a few feet within the threshold. The water that sloshed around their knees came from beyond the door and its darkness within.

"Phelphor!?" Anubis called, looking around for the Creature, "Hey, Phelphor, where'd you go!?"

Energy fizzed and crackled through the air, making Fenrir's hair stand on end, and Anubis suddenly screamed and slammed into the wall across the room with a crack.

"Anubis!" Seraphim took flight but was immediately brought down by another blast of energy. She crashed into the water with a tremendous splash.

Fenrir spun with a snarl that died on his lips as he saw what was waiting behind them. Three rows of nasty looking Creatures blocked their exit, Phelphor at their head. Beside him, Cerberus started growling and heat waves shimmered off his body.

"What the heck are you playing at Phelphor!?" Fenrir shouted, "Why'd you do that to Anubis and Sera—AAAHHHHHHGGGG!" A red bolt of lightning shot from Phelphor's palm and hit Fenrir square in the chest, sending him spiraling backwards. He smashed into one of the guardian statues by the door and was left draped over its pedestal, arms dangling in the water.

"Fenrir!" Cerberus' spines shot upright and he brought his arms forward in a defensive position, ready to attack.

Phelphor smiled slyly and said, "_Bellum, diligo, quod nex…silentium. Amicitia…silentium. Carmen of Angelus…fatum."_

Cerberus thought his head had split open. He screamed and his hands flew to his skull, claws digging into his hair as he sought to relieve himself of the agony he was going through. He fell to his knees in the water and it splashed up his chest, soaking him. Stars erupted in his eyes. He couldn't see, couldn't think, couldn't do anything as the pain escalated into something no living thing should have been able to handle. Voices clamored inside his, thousands of voices, all talking and shouting and laughing. And there was that lingering haunt of untapped power. He felt tight in his own skin and hot.

The water around Cerberus started to bubble. Phelphor grinned as steam rose from the UnderWorld Prince's body. One of the Creatures next to him shifted uneasily.

"Sir," He said as Cerberus continued to scream and the water foamed around him, "Are you sure it is wise to let his mind sit in the same flow as the Goddess' for such an extended period. Look at what's happening when they're not even—."

"Be silent!" Phelphor snarled, "And have your men grab the other three. We are going into the city."

"Yessir." The Creature saluted and motioned for his men to gather up Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim.

"_Expedio_." Phelphor murmured and the water ceased its insistent bubbling. Cerberus collapsed and Phelphor reached down and hoisted him out of the water, "You are such a precious thing and yet…you live such a pointless existence." Phelphor turned to his soldiers, "Come! Into the city! The time for the Goddess to come to us is near…"

-Beyond the Doors of the Deeps Mines…-

Cerberus felt as though an elephant had tried to cram its way inside his skull. His head was pounding and every inch of him was raw and itchy. He sat up slowly and put a hand to his head only to find his wrists cuffed together with a chain leading from the cuffs to a metal collar around his neck and another chain to the shackles on his ankles. He looked around fearfully and saw his friends in the same positions.

The room was small and made of blue-ish stone. Veins of glowing green…stuff lit the room with a sickly bottle green light, the air was moist and cool, and the whole place stank of mildew, standing water in a dying field, and fish. There were several doors of black stone leading out of the room but they were guarded by the same, nasty looking Creatures that had attacked them in the cavern before. Most of the looked very similar to Phelphor. Cerberus' growl rumbled low in his throat and drew the attention of Phelphor, who'd been speaking in a quick whisper to one of the guards.

"Ahhhh, Ker Berethrou, you have awaken." Phelphor smiled coldly and a chill ran up Cerberus' spine.

"Ker…Berethrou?" He managed to squeeze the words past the lump in his throat, "What…you called me…but I…my…dreams…that name…"

Phelphor chuckled but it was humorless and dark, "Yes, you recognize that name from your dreams, don't you…Catalyst?"

"Stop it…" Cerberus whispered hoarsely. The other three looked on in wonder, anger, and confusion, "Stop…calling me…that's not my name!"

"But it is what you are!" Phelphor said, showing his jagged teeth again in giant grin, "You are the Catalyst! You are Ker Berethrou, the Demon of the Pit!" Cerberus just stared at him, "And you have no idea what any of that means…"

"Who are you really!?" Seraphim shouted suddenly, "What do you want with us!?"

"Yeah!" Fenrir cut in, "You said you were gonna help us find the other tribes and then you turned around and attacked us and chained us up! What the heck are you doing!?" The bravado in his voice was false.

"Foolish Prince," Phelphor hissed, "I _lied_."

"Then who are you really!?" Anubis snapped, pulling against his chains and making them rattle, "Tell us!"

"As his majesty commands." Phelphor mocked, sweeping into a bow with a sardonic smile. When he straightened, he threw his hands up towards the ceiling dramatically and bellowed, "We are the ones chosen to harness the true power of Perim! Jealous of our might, the other tribes chased us away and we locked ourselves behind the Doors of the Deep Mines until we could get what we needed to overthrow those pompous fools outside!" Phelphor swung his arms down and looked at the four heirs, "We," He said in a voice that was almost a whisper, "Are the M'arrilians."

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_Translations: A Universitas of Jugis Bellum – A World of Ceaseless War, bellum – war, diligo – love, quod nex – and death, silentium – silenced, amicitia – friends, Carmen of Angelus – Voice of the Angels, fatum – fate, expedio – clarity_

_AAAAAHHH!!! (ducks many sharp pointy objects) Don't kill me! I'm sorry! I know you guys waited forever for new chapters and I gave you a cliffhanger at the end and I'm really sorry! Please don't kill me! _

_That last scene wasn't going to be there but I just couldn't bear not putting it in there and giving you guys a teaser. I can't wait to see what you say about this! X3 First Phelphor leads them on a merry run all across Perim and then BAM! Double-crossed! Honestly, how many of you were writhing in their seats and screaming at their computer screen going, "No! No, you idiots! He's a M'arrilian! No! What're you doing! Stop! Punch his face in! No, don't follow him! Gah, you're so stupid!"_

_I would have been. _

_Okay, for purposes of this fan fiction I did have to make some things up. In any case, this is an AU so I can do whatever I want. But I just made up the Great Caverns and…whatever's going on with the M'arrilians. Meh. I'm not telling you anything. (grins)_

_Well I think that just about covers everything. Does anyone know when the fall season is going to start? September, maybe? Not like I can watch it. I don't have that channel anymore. (goes and cries in a dark corner)_

_Anyway, thanks for waiting so long for these updates. I know they're few and far between but I hope to remedy that very quickly once fall hits. Maybe. I will be starting college so…it's a hope. But anyways, thank you all for reading this and sticking with it. And thanks for the awesomely super sensationalistic reviews! Whoa…the computer recognizes the sensationalistic…_

_So thanks again, I can't say it enough! Please review! Reviews mean more chapters and stop "twilight" from being so popular that it blocks out all the true, hardworking authors whose works aren't getting read because Hollywood's a bunch of words I don't use. _

_There. I said it. _


	20. Tracto Verum

_So, you all hate me, huh? (grins) Excellent. _

_I would like to apologize in advance for only having one chapter done. I got Writer's Block for The Files and this part was prewritten a long while back. But please, enjoy this chapter and what little entertainment it can provide! :)

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_

**Tracto Verum

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**

-Beyond the Doors of the Deeps Mines…-

"We are the ones chosen to harness the true power of Perim! Jealous of our might, the other tribes chased us away and we locked ourselves behind the Doors of the Deep Mines until we could get what we needed to overthrow those pompous fools outside!" Phelphor swung his arms down and looked at the four heirs, "We," He said in a voice that was almost a whisper, "Are the M'arrilians."

"You?" Cerberus said softly, "You're the ones…who did all that to the UnderWorld…to Perim?"

"Why, yes." Phelphor sneered, "And it was jolly good fun."

"Dastard!" Fenrir screamed, launching himself forward only to be knocked aside and pinned to the ground by several armed guards, "How dare you! Why're you doing this!? Why'd you destroy Perim!? Why!? It's your home too! What about the other tribes!? What did you do to them!?"

"You have a big mouth, _trova procer_." Phelphor snapped, "The other tribes have vanished into the Mipedian Desert where our reach does not—as of yet—extend. It is too dry for the likes of us. As for Perim…that is business of my own." He turned his back on them, "Let's move. The sooner we get this over with the better."

The M'arrilian soldiers around the room stepped into action. They hauled the four heirs up on their feet and nudged them into a walk with sharp weapons. Phelphor led the group of about twelve through one of the doors in the room and into a dank tunnel. The ground churned underfoot as they walked, mud and rock cold on their bare feet, and the steady drip of water from the ceiling made it worse.

Cerberus was in a state of shock. He—and his companions—had trusted Phelphor to help them only to be stabbed in the back. It seemed that everywhere they turned there were only more lies and more pain to go through. The happy blissfulness of the Human Realm felt like it had happened years ago. But even that had been a lie. All that joy, all that wonder, all that laughter, all that love had been nothing but a deceitful illusion created by their minds.

"Where're we going?" Anubis asked, sounding disgusted as the earth squelched up between his toes.

"To Psikoom City, where we M'arrilians have dwelled for almost one hundred years. Long enough for Perim to forget about us." Answered one of the guards, "But not long enough for us to forget about them or the G—."

"Commander," Phelphor was suddenly centimeters away from the M'arrilian who'd spoken, unspoken threats glinting in his large, "With all due respect…zip your howling screamer!" And he slapped the other M'arrilian across the face.

The Creature's head exploded.

Seraphim screamed and stumbled backwards into Anubis who caught her before she fell. The M'arrilian's limp form wobbled on its feet for a few seconds and then collapsed to the ground, blue blood mingling with the sodden earth. Cerberus' heart was hammering in his chest and he thought he was going to faint.

"What the heck!? He was one of you! Why the heck did you do that!?" Fenrir screeched, panicking and scrambling back as best he could while a M'arrilian had him by the neck.

"Because people who can't keep their mouths shut are become a danger encumbrance." Phelphor replied coolly, flicking some blood from his fingers, "Henthin, you're the Commander now so set the brat down nice and easy before you get hurt." The M'arrilian who'd been holding Fenrir released the OverWorlder and stepped away without a word, "Let's go."

They set off again. Seraphim stuck close to Anubis who was trying his best to stay calm, Fenrir was seething in fury and horror and he didn't bother trying to hide it, and Cerberus was point blank scared out of his wits.

_This isn't happening! This can't be happening! Why us!? Why us!?_

"_**Because you hold the keys to Perim's future."**_

Cerberus screamed in agony as the angelic voice in his head spoke. It felt like ice needles were expanding inside his skull. He fell to his knees in the mud, groaning and screaming. Muffled voices shouted around him but he couldn't understand them. All he could hear was the voice in his head.

"_**Keep moving. I can tell you the way but you must walk it. Pick up your feet, Catalyst, and come to me."**_

The world suddenly fell back into focus. There was a buzzing noise in Cerberus' head. He gasped, still on his knees on the floor, and tears leaked out of his eyes. They hissed and steamed as they hit the wet earth.

"Get up," Growled the M'arrilian next to him, "And quit whining."

Cerberus whimpered and, with a little help from Fenrir, hauled himself to his feet again. Phelphor was looking at him with a blank expression but as soon as he noticed Cerberus watching he turned away and kept moving.

"You alright?" Fenrir whispered as they started walking again.

"Yeah…" The UnderWorld Prince lied, "I just…there…never mind."

Fenrir was about to say something but a M'arrilian stepped between the two boys and effortlessly shoved Fenrir aside. The end of the tunnel loomed ahead. The mud under their feet had slowly dried and turned to solid, blue-gray rock. Strange light filtered through the tunnel exit—all blues and greens and magentas and yellows. They stepped through the opening. Seraphim gasped.

They could have been underwater. A huge expanse of rock caverns stretched out before them, pillars supporting the roof, and tangy smell of the ocean hung in the air. Stone troughs held glowing, seaweed-like plants of rainbow colors, multi-colored fish "swam" in schools around pillars and dodged out of sight when they saw the party, and there were openings and paths heading off in every direction. For all this, though, the place seemed eerily empty.

"Where is everyone?" Anubis' whisper was strained, "I thought you said this was a city."

"Unfortunately," Phelphor said casually as he led the group down a spiraling side hall, "Many members of our…society disliked the idea of moving as fast as we did. They had to be disposed of. Our Chieftains were especially blinded to the fact that we had to act quicker than they would have liked. Beings of pure energy…hmph, they thought themselves indestructible. Fools."

"You killed your leaders?" Fenrir asked, shocked.

"Indeed." Phelphor grinned menacingly, "And in the M'arrilian world…you keep what you kill."

"Oh Goddess…!" Seraphim moaned, "This can't be real! Help…somebody help us!" One of the M'arrilian soldiers kicked her and she fell with a cry. Fenrir snarled a warning and jumped on him but he could do little with his limbs bound and was soon thrust aside.

"Stop fighting!" Henthin snapped and the M'arrilian let up but not before digging his heel into Seraphim's gut.

Phelphor had watched the whole thing in silence but he was watching the M'arrilian who'd assaulted the Danian Princess carefully. Henthin turned to face Phelphor and the M'arrilian leader flicked his gaze away,

"We keep moving. I will not tolerate any more delays."

Cerberus stopped paying attention to where they were going. He was terrified and there was a constant whispering in the back of his mind that made his head hurt and his limbs ache. But he didn't dare say a word or stop moving. He withdrew into himself, fighting to keep his sanity in check. He was so busy trying to scream and panic that he ran into a M'arrilian.

They'd stopped.

This chamber was domed and circular with a dark stone chair in the center and, besides the open tunnel behind them, there were eight stone doors situated on the curving wall behind the chair.

"And we arrive." Phelphor murmured.

"Where are we?" Fenrir growled, defiant even in his fear. He was brave, the bravest person Cerberus knew, and had a strong heart that could lead him and his companions through the hardest of times, "What do you want with us!?"

"I suppose I _could_ tell you…" Phelphor paced in front of the chair, a sly smile on his face, "Yes, I suppose I could. There seems to be no harm in that." He chuckled, "You see, we M'arrilians have known the location of Perim's most powerful resource. We had the Goddess' power at our fingertips but could not use it. Do you know what I'm talking about?"

"No…no way…" Anubis whispered hoarsely, "The Cothica…"

"Yes!" Phelphor said triumphantly, "The Cothica! The powerhouse of Perim, the spirit of the land, our Goddess! But we could not reach her! We could not reach her because we did not have the tools! If we controlled the Cothica we could rebuild Perim as we saw fit, we could make it a better place, without judgment or chaos!"

"Judgment and chaos are balancers!" Seraphim snapped, "Without them everything would fall apart!"

"Foolish noble!" Phelphor snarled, "Without either we could live peacefully!" He took a deep breath and calmed himself, "The only problem was that I could not reach the Cothica; I had to have untainted royal blood to get to her. The obvious choice was you four." He pulled a decorative dagger of obsidian and fingered its tip with interest, "The plan was simple: start a war, snatch the heirs before they vanish, get the Cothica. But things didn't go as planned. You left Perim sooner than we expected and then our way was blocked at Chaotic."

"Elliot…" Fenrir hissed in realization, "You didn't count on him getting in your way! _You're_ the one that killed him!"

"Maybe so…" The cruel grin told the whole story, "Either way, the fighting was getting too intense for us to stay hidden. I killed the Chieftains and took over the M'arrilian army. We moved against Perim and destroyed everything in our path. All the while, myself and the Cothica were attempting to contact the key to this whole puzzle in order to get you four to come back home." He looked at Cerberus.

"Then…the dreams…" The UnderWorlder's eyes widened, "The visions…the voices…that was you! That was you the whole time! Driving me crazy! All of it was you!?"

"It took longer than I expected." Phelphor ran a finger down the side of the dagger, "The longer a Creature stays in the Human Realm, the more its culture and disgusting aura crushes the spirit. Eventually, a Creature covered in Glamour will soon forget they ever were a Creature. Their powers will dwindle away and they will become a permanent human." He glanced at the four heirs, "You lot were lucky; your powers had not yet reached their full potential when you were sent in the Human Realm. They built up over the years and eventually exploded out of you. I watched the whole thing."

"Lies…all lies…" Cerberus whimpered, "Everything we thought was true…lies…"

Phelphor ignored him, "Either way, I got what I needed, however long it took." Those cold, violet eyes lingered on Fenrir, "You're first, OverWorlder."

Two M'arrilians grabbed the Prince under his arms and dragged him towards the chair. Fenrir kicked and screamed as they slammed him against the stone, fists and legs flailing but to no avail. The M'arrilians were too strong.

"A sacrifice is required for the drawing of the map," Phelphor spoke calmly over Fenrir's howls as he struggled against his captors, "Blood must be spilt upon the parchment." He pulled an old scrap of paper out, the dagger still clutched in his other hand, and watched as his fellow tribe mates clamped Fenrir's wrists and ankles down with stone cuffs.

"Spread this out and make sure plenty of the brat's blood gets on it." Phelphor ordered, tossing the parchment to Henthin before walking up to the growling OverWorld Prince, "Where to cut, where to cut…?" Phelphor let the dagger's tip hover over Fenrir's heart. Fenrir's eyes widened in horror and he pulled against his bonds, chest heaving as fear flooded through him and tears streaked his face.

"How about…your throat?" Phelphor grabbed the OverWorld Prince's hair in a fist and yanked his head back, exposing his neck.

"NO!" Cerberus screeched, lunging forward only to be dragged back again, "NO! DON'T!"

"PLEASE!" Fenrir cried, sobbing, eyes blurred with tears as he watched the dagger quivering at his neck, closer and closer with each passing second, "PLEASE! NO!"

"Borders are scratched across the hearts of men," Phelphor chanted slowly, holding tight to Fenrir even as the Prince struggled in his grasp, "By strangers with a calm, judicial pen. And when the borders bleed we watch, with dread, the lines of ink across the map turn red."

"NO!" Fenrir kept howling, "NO, PLEASE, NO! FATHER! SOMEBODY! HELP ME! FATHER! PLEASE DO—!"

A spray of ruby red erupted into the air.

Fenrir's crystal blue eyes widened in pain and shock, his scream dying before it reached his lips.

Blood poured from the gash in his throat, dribbling onto the parchment the M'arrilian held.

Seraphim screamed and turned away, burying her face in Anubis' shoulder. Anubis' teeth were gritted and he was doing his best to fight back the tears. Cerberus was in too much shock to do anything but stare.

The light vanished from Fenrir's eyes.

The Prince of the OverWorld was dead.

"Alright, that's enough." Phelphor wiped the dagger on Fenrir's shirt, stashed it away, and took the map from his fellow M'arrilian, grinning, "That was more than enough."

The crimson liquid that had been splashed onto the parchment had turned the whole thing completely red. Some of it faded away while the rest of it remained in thins lines and ancient writing, pointing the way to the most powerful thing in all of Perim.

"Let's go." Phelphor ordered, heading towards the fourth door from the right, "And bring the other three, we'll need them."

"Move it!" A M'arrilian growled, kicking Anubis in the back, "Now!"

Anubis and Seraphim stumbled forward, tears still streaming from the Danian Princess' eyes. Cerberus' legs collapsed underneath him and he crashed to the stone floor.

"Get up!" Another M'arrilian snarled and when the UnderWorld Prince didn't move, the M'arrilian grabbed the collar around Cerberus' neck and dragged him after the rest of the group. Cerberus' knees scrapped painfully against the rock and he instinctively pulled back. The M'arrilian retaliated and threw the young Creature against the floor. Cerberus cried out in pain and then choked as the M'arrilian kicked him in the stomach.

"Stop it!" Seraphim yelled, struggling to get back to the moaning Cerberus, "Stop hurting him! He didn't do anything to you! He didn't do anything!"

"Shut up!" The M'arrilian hissed at her and shot a burst of energy that punched her in the stomach. As Seraphim doubled over and Anubis roared in fury, the M'arrilian turned back to Cerberus and stomped his heel into the UnderWorlder's face. Cerberus screamed in pain as a trickle of black blood welled out of his mouth.

"_ENOUGH_!" Phelphor shouted, suddenly appearing between his underling and the rest of the group, "Your violent temper has become a hindrance to this mission." He raised a hand and blasted offending M'arrilian. Chunks of flesh splattered to the ground and blue blood sprayed across Cerberus who was still curled on the stone.

"Get up," Phelphor grabbed the UnderWorld Prince's collar and hauled him to his feet, "And move. You're precious cargo and we can't afford to have you damaged." Cerberus' answer was a whimper of fear and pain, "You can't be damaged but _they_ can." Phelphor pointed at Seraphim and Anubis, "Disobey and _they_ get punished. Understand?" Cerberus nodded, "Good. Let's keep moving."

They wandered down winding corridor after winding corridor of rock, passing strange murals etched in foreign languages. Cerberus' head was spinning and he was flooded with clashing emotions. He couldn't focus completely. Precious cargo? How? Fenrir was dead? Why? Mission? For what? The Cothica? Where?

He bumped into Anubis who'd stopped in front of him.

"Blood is needed to get through this door." Phelphor said, looking up at massive metal gateway inscribed with curving symbols and twisting pictures, "_Royal_ blood. Get the Danian."

"NO!" Anubis threw himself in front of Seraphim but a M'arrilian knocked him aside and grabbed the Danian Princess by the neck, dragging her towards the heavy iron door barring their path.

Phelphor grabbed her wrist and drew out the same dagger he'd used to kill Fenrir with. Anubis howled in anguish, trying desperately to get back on his feet. Cerberus was shaking so badly he was in danger of collapsing again.

Phelphor raised the dagger.

Seraphim squeezed her eyes shut.

Anubis hurled curse words at the lot of them but made no headway.

Cerberus stared, wide eyed, about to watch another one of his friends die.

Phelphor brought the dagger down…

…and slashed it across Seraphim's palm.

Anubis snapped his mouth shut in wonder and relief.

Phelphor pressed Seraphim's bleeding hand to the door and drew it across the metal, leaving a great yellow-green streak in its wake. Then he released her. Seraphim stumbled backwards to lean against Anubis, fingers curled tightly around the cut on her palm.

They curving symbols on the door glowed indigo and then the door creaked open with a grating screech that made even the stunned Cerberus cringe. Phelphor led them through, map in hand, and they headed deeper into the M'arrilian city.

"Cerb, you alright, dude?" Anubis asked after a couple hours of walking, jumping pitfalls, and doing everything in their power not to trigger the many traps and puzzles set up along the way, "You look…sick."

Indeed, the UnderWorld Prince was looking worse for ware. He was covered in sweat, his eyes were glazed, and he was panting heavily. On the outside, he seemed to be suffering from a cold. But on the inside, he was fighting for his mind. Voices clamored inside his head, telling him where to step and what to look for. It was hurting him. He shook himself, shivered, but didn't answer. More often than not, while they were walking, he would stumble and fall. A M'arrilian was now forced to keep a constant grip on his upper arm.

"Fine…I'm…just fine…" Cerberus murmured, looking away from Anubis, "Just…dandy…"

Anubis was not convinced but didn't pursue the matter. Cerberus and Fenrir had been close friends. Perhaps the death of the OverWorlder was affecting Cerberus more than he cared to admit.

-Psikoom City, Beyond the Doors of the Deep Mines-

After what seemed like an eternity of walking, Phelphor stopped the group in the middle of a four way intersection, looking in all directions. He turned his eyes to the map, back to the four passageways before him, and then snarled.

"All four paths lead to the Cothica," He grumbled darkly, "But one of them is shorter. The map doesn't tell which one. It's another dratted puzzle!"

Seraphim glanced at Anubis who looked stony-faced back at her. Then they both looked around at Cerberus. He was breathing heavily, eyes wide, staring at the floor, gasping like he'd run for miles. Suddenly he whimpered and twisted in the M'arrilian's grip. Then he screamed in pain and sagged to the stone floor. The M'arrilian who held him snarled several insults and kicked him in the side, yanking him to his feet. Cerberus kept screaming.

"Shut your whimpering mouth!" Another M'arrilian snapped, raising a fist to punch Cerberus as the prince took another breath to start howling again. Phelphor was suddenly there, gripping the M'arrilian's wrist in his wide hand.

"Do not strike the Catalyst!" He hissed, flashing his jagged teeth, "He cries because the _Carmen of Angelus_ is loud in his mind! He can hear it, he can point the way." Phelphor released his subordinate and stalked up to Cerberus who was standing once more, shaking, but no longer screaming. Sweat dripped down the side of the UnderWorld Prince's face and his breathing was ragged.

"Which way, Ker Berethrou?" Phelphor asked in his manipulative tone, "Where did the Cothica's voice come from?" Cerberus closed his eyes and shook his head, sounding close to tears. Phelphor lost his patience and grabbed Cerberus' chin, jerking the boy's head up so that his chocolate eyes were looking into those burning violet ones, "Where does the Goddess tell you to go!? Show me!" He let Cerberus go with a jerk, causing the prince's head to fling to the side as though he'd been slapped.

"_Quis operor vos votum_?" Cerberus breathed, swaying back and forth on his feet, looking for all the world like he was going to faint on the spot. Then he winced, shaking his head as though to clear away unwanted thoughts, "Stop it…stop using me like that…!"

"Where…do…we…go?" Phelphor whispered in a sing-song tone, egging Cerberus on as he stumbled away from his captor, eyes flicking left and right, from one tunnel to the next, "Which path…do we…take?"

"Cerberus! Stop!" Seraphim cried, "Stop it! You can fight! Stop!"

"She's calling…" Cerberus muttered and fell to his knees in front of the second passage from the left, "Calling me…it hurts…make her stop…it hurts me…" He doubled over on the stone, "Make her stop it! It HURTS!"

"Shhhhhhh," Phelphor knelt beside him, put one hand on his back, wrapped the fingers of his other hand around the iron bindings on Cerberus' wrists, "Hush. Once we get there, she'll stop hurting you."

"Stop it!" Anubis growled, jerking against a M'arrilian's hold, "Stop manipulating him! Just sto—oommff!" He coughed as the M'arrilian socked him in the stomach.

"Seriously?" Cerberus moaned, leaning against Phelphor, "She'll stop? She will? She'll stop hurting me? She'll leave me alone?"

"Yes, I promise she'll stop hurting you." Phelphor said softly, "But you have to get p and keep moving. Because if you don't meet her, she'll continue to hurt you."

"Okay…okay…I'll…I'll see her…her…the Goddess…I'll…go to her…" Cerberus continued to mutter to himself as he slowly got back up on his feet. Phelphor grinned coldly and let Cerberus take the lead. The going was slow because Cerberus stumbled and fell an awful lot and often had to stop in order to sort through the commotion in his head to find out where he was going.

Finally, he sagged against a door of white ivory and silver, leaving a streak of dark sweat on it as he sank to the floor.

"Here…" He whispered, eyes closed, "She's here…she's calling me…"

"At last!" Phelphor grabbed Cerberus and yanked him to his feet, "Open it, Ker Berethrou! Open the door!"

"Don't!" Seraphim cried but whatever she was going to say was cut off by a M'arrilian slapping a hand over her mouth. Anubis was in the same predicament.

Cerberus rested his forehead against the door and murmured something under his breath. The words were strung with power, even though the other couldn't understand what he was saying. The silver in the door glowed white and the door disappeared, leaving Cerberus to fall forward with a dull thud.

Blue-white light spilled out of the opening, sparkles of gold and white drifted through the air like snow, and something like the sounds of a flute, harp, and a piano tingled through the very air in an almost tangible way.

"The Cothica…!" Phelphor whispered, violet eyes dancing with excitement.

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_Translations: Tracto Verum – Handling the Truth, Quis Operor vos votum? – What do you desire?_

_MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Another cliffhanger to piss you guys off! You already hate me now you're probably going to—HOLY CRAP! (dodges missiles and grenades) Okay, okay, okay! No more cliffies! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!_

_Phew, anyway… _

_I just made up Henthin. And I stole a line from the last Riddick movie; the one that wasn't as good. Pitch Black was so much cooler than the last one. That poem that Phelphor chanted is property of Marya Mannes from Subverse: Rhymes for Our Times._

_Oh, another disclaimer. This idea was created _lloooooooonnngggggg_ before any of the Chieftains showed up. So once they were introduced in the show I had to change things around a little bit. Hence, Phelphor killed all the Chieftains. _

_Ooooooohhhh, wanna know what I just found out? THEFALLSEASONOFCHAOTICISSTARTINGONSATURDAY!OHMYGOSHI'MSOFREAKINGEXCITEDEVENTHOUGHICAN'TWATCHITBUTIDON'TCARE'CAUSEIHAVERELIABLESOURCESWHOWILLTELLMEWHAT'SGOINGON!!! (all of this is said in one breath)_

_Um…if you can't read that…I'm sorry…_

_So anyway, thanks so much for reading and for all those reviews! You guys are the best! The bomb! You're all awesome and I'm giving you all cyber hugs! (gives you all cyber hugs) Please keep reviewing! Reviews motivate me to write more chapters and hug Ratchet 'cause he's a lonely Lombax! hug t3h lon3ly l0mb4x! g1v3 h1m 4 hug, h3's l0n3ly! X3 _


	21. Obtineo

_Wow, you guys really wanna kill me that much? I kinda of enjoyed the death threats, I've never gotten those before! I like how you didn't even care that the last chapter was a cliffhanger and you were only pissed about Fenrir getting killed. Trust me, you're going to hate me a lot more later. X3

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**Obtineo

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-Beyond the Doors of the Deep Mines, Psikoom City, the Shrine of the Cothica-

The light coming from the opening was warm and comfortable in the chill dampness of the deepest parts of Psikoom. It bathed everything in white-blue light, sending it all into a stark relief of light and shadow.

Seraphim's palm tingled where Phelphor had cut her with the knife and she looked down in amazement. The wound was stitching itself closed, healing as though nothing had ever happened. She looked up at Anubis who was staring at her. They both looked around at Cerberus.

He hadn't moved.

He was still lying face down on the ground, breathing ragged, eyes closed.

The M'arrilians around them stood still in silent awe.

All of them except Phelphor.

His strange violet eyes reflected the dancing light from beyond the threshold. He stood, bathed in it, basking in the power that he had unlocked. Then, he laughed. It was horrible; a twisted cry of evil victory that echoed down the hall, jangling with the harmonic sounds coming from the light.

"Get up! Get up, Catalyst!" Phelphor shouted jubilantly as he grabbed Cerberus' arm and yanked him upright, "Your destiny is about to be fulfilled!" Cerberus whimpered, hanging pathetically in Phelphor's grasp. The M'arrilian lowered his voice, almost cooing over the Prince, "You poor, little lost soul, you didn't know your purpose. Didn't know the reason for your creation. Poor, poor thing…" Phelphor looked around at his soldiers, "Help me."

They scrambled to obey. In the rush, Seraphim and Anubis pushed themselves forward and into the room along with the rest. Anubis choked down a gasp of shock. Phelphor and his soldiers were dragging the limp form of Cerberus towards a throne made entirely of crystal that glowed with the same brilliant light that had spilled out of the room when the door had vanished. It seemed to be lit from within by the sun, the stars, and the moon itself. Raw power flowed from it, making Anubis' scales pop and rise likes hackles along his back.

Inches from the throne, Cerberus suddenly sprang to life.

"No!" He screamed, thrashing against the hold of the M'arrilians, chains rattling, "Don't! I don't want to! Let me go! Noooooooo!" He flung himself away from the M'arrilians and suddenly, with a snap and a clatter of metal, his bindings shattered. Cerberus bolted for the door but an Electro-Web wrapped around him and sent him screaming to the floor.

The M'arrilians pounced on him and hauled him back towards the throne. Anubis and Seraphim ran to help him but found themselves pinned to the ground by a couple of burly M'arrilians.

"No, please!" Cerberus cried, tears streaking his face, "I don't want to! Leave me alone! Let go! Stop it! Father! Father, help me!" Cerberus bucked and struggled, screaming at the top of his voice for help, for the M'arrilians to let him go, that he'd kill them. They ignored him and threw him onto the throne. Cerberus leapt back up again immediately as though he'd been burned and tried to run. The M'arrilians grabbed him and threw him back again.

This time, Cerberus didn't get up.

He sat ridged in the chair, fingers clenched tightly around the armrests, eyes wide with panic. He was nearly hyperventilating. No one moved.

"_**Catalyst…"**_ Everyone heard it, the chorus of a thousand angelic voices all speaking in a symphony of beauty, _**"I've been waiting a long time for you…too long, in fact. My freedom…here…at long last…"**_

"No…not me…" Cerberus squeezed his eyes shut, "Not me…please not me…" He struggled to pull his arms off the chair but found he could not. With a howl he twisted and pulled but he could not get up, "Let me go! I'm me! You can't…you…I DON'T WANT TO DISAPPEAR!"

"Your purpose was to disappear." Phelphor sneered. The light in the room seemed to be growing dimmer, all of it was being pulled back into the throne, making it blaze like a beacon in the dark, "You are the Ker Berethrou, the Demon of the Pit, and the Catalyst of the Cothica! You were made for this reason alone! The fates deemed it so!" He stepped closer so he was inches from the UnderWorld Prince's face, "The dreams were sent so you would remember who you were, the voices were supposed to awaken your spirit, but it was the human boy's death that finally unlocked your powers!"

"Human…boy?" Cerberus stared at Phelphor, understanding dawning on his face. It quickly turned to rage, "You! You killed Aras! You're the one who did it! I'll kill you! I'll murder your wretched hide! I'll—!"

"_**Open your heart to me."**_ Said the angel voices.

Cerberus screamed.

White light erupted from the throne, encasing the UnderWorlder in a brilliant shell of blinding energy and power. Anubis and Seraphim shielded their eyes from the blast along with everyone else. A roar made static buzz in their ears, winds howled, tearing at them, a sound like the clash of swords and the fire of cannons sent them to their knees, and through it all they could hear Cerberus' piercing howl.

"What's happening!?" Anubis shouted but his voice was lost amongst the noise. He wasn't even sure that he'd made any noise at all.

The wind and the noise and the light were all suddenly sucked towards their source. The throne. Within minutes of the whole torrent starting, it had receded, leaving the room eerily quiet and the occupants on the floor.

Seraphim was on her feet first and was racing towards the throne but a M'arrilian grabbed the chain hanging between her ankles and brought her down. Another M'arrilian grabbed Anubis before he could do anything.

Cerberus was slumped in the throne, head hanging, bangs dangling in his face.

Phelphor stood slowly, never taking his eyes off Cerberus. Then he whispered,

"Wake up."

Cerberus stirred. His fingers flexed across the armrests of the throne, the tip of his tail twitched, and he sighed. Then he stood, slowly, elegantly, like an angel unfolding its wings, and tossed his head back. His eyes were still closed.

"Cerberus!" Anubis called.

The UnderWorlder's eyes snapped open. They were no longer dark brown but red and gold that sparkled with stars and lights of their own, glowing from within. Seraphim gasped. Those eyes flickered to her and then towards the open door. Cerberus—if that's who it was—took a deep breath and let it out slowly. A wave of awesome power rolled off of his body, sweeping through the room with a cool breeze and the smell of the earth after the rain.

"Cothica…" Phelphor murmured.

Red-gold turned to look at the M'arrilian. Blinked once, twice, and then said in a voice that was Cerberus' and yet somehow not, "I seem to find myself wearing rags, Phelphor, care to explain?"

Phelphor howled with laughter, "Your imprisonment has come to an end and the first thing you can say is that you want better clothes!? You amuse me, Goddess!"

"Goddess…?" Seraphim said. Phelphor and Cerberus looked around at her, "But…but that's not…that's Cerberus…"

"Not any more, it's not." Phelphor sneered, "Behold, the Cothica, freed from its prison in the depths of Psikoom City, in the body of the once proud and noble UnderWorld Prince."

"You flatter me, Phelphor." The Cothica murmured, a small smile playing across its lips.

"Shut up." Phelphor snapped, "I want you to stop talking down to me. _I_ freed you, _I_ gave you a body, _I_ brought you the Catalyst, so _you_ have to obey _me_! That is the law!"

The Cothica stared at the M'arrilian leader blankly and then nodded slowly, "As my master commands."

"Good." Phelphor turned to deal with his men but the Cothica wasn't finished.

"May I make a request?"

"Request?" Phelphor glared at the Cothica in Cerberus' body but the powerhouse of Perim said nothing, "Fine, what do you want?"

"Them." It pointed to Anubis and Seraphim, "I want them."

"Fine, have them, I don't care." Phelphor waved his hand dismissively, "But you are not to set them free."

"Of course." The Cothica smiled coolly. It looked around at the Danian Princess and the Mipedian Prince.

Anubis was seething under the blank stare of the Cothica. His scales crackled as he struggled to keep himself from lashing out; attacking would get them no where. The Cothica blinked at them and then casually reached up and brushed jet black bangs out of its face. A single tear streaked down Seraphim's face. The Cothica turned away but not before the two nobles saw those strange eyes flicker from red-gold to dark chocolate brown and back again.

-Beyond the Doors of the Deep Mines, Psikoom City, Kinesis Hall, The Cothica's Room-

"Get out." The Cothica growled, eyes glowing completely golden as it glared at the M'arrilian standing in the threshold, "Get. Out."

"B-but I—!"

The Cothica bared Cerberus' fangs and fluxed its power, making an icey wind swirl to life. It lifted the hem of the white and gold robe Perim's ultimate source of power was wearing and sent it tossing ominously into the air. The M'arrilian left quickly and the Cothica slammed the door shut, locking it so that no one could enter. Then it turned and headed towards its massive, four poster bed.

Upon leaving the Shrine, Phelphor had led them to Kinesis Hall, a grand manor that had once housed the higher ranking citizens of M'arrilian society. The Cothica had been given a large and unnecessarily posh room. The Cothica had then situated Seraphim and Anubis in adjacent rooms. Now, it pressed the hand of its host's body to the wall and let a trickle of power seep out. A door formed under its touch. It opened the door and beckoned the two heirs through before closing it behind them.

"Give us back our friend." Seraphim said as soon as the Cothica turned around to face them again, "Now, or I'll make you wish you'd never existed."

"Do you think I like what's going on here?" The Cothica said coldly, eyes narrowed, "Sit down." Neither of them moved, "Fine, suit yourselves." It sat on the bed with a sigh, "True, I did not enjoy being captive in that crystal prison but I'm not more free than I was before. Phelphor has bound me to him."

"I don't trust you." Anubis snapped, fists clenched at his sides.

"I'm not asking you to. Though it would help in the long run." The Cothica stared at its—at Cerberus'—hands, "In truth, I wish I could give you all what you want. But, in light of current circumstances, I am unable to do so."

"What're you talking about?" Anubis asked, unable to stop himself from being curious. It was part of his Mipedian nature.

"I'll tell you if you are willing to listen. Will you please sit down; you're making me feel as though I am being interrogated." The Cothica gestured to the sofa and the two other Creatures sank into it, "I am the spirit of Perim; this, I'm sure, you already know. I have many names—the Goddess, the Ultimate Weapon, and what have you—but I will always be the Cothica; the Lifeforce. Every thought, every feeling, every action, and every single thing that happens in Perim…I know about it. I _am_ Perim. Without me, Perim will die. In fact, it has been weakened due to my imprisonment.

"At one time, I was free to roam Perim as the wind, the wings of a bird, the heart of a stag, or any number of things. I saw all, I knew all. That was a time of peace and serenity, when the tribes lived as though they were not so different from one another." The Cothica closed its eyes as though fighting back tears, "I was ignorantly happy because the majority of Perim was so. In my unawareness, I failed to see what was happening behind my back. The M'arrilians had somehow discovered my existence and, believing that if they harnessed me they could control Perim, captured me.

"But capturing me was like capturing the life and spirit of every single living thing. It nearly destroyed Perim. The M'arrilians, unsure of what to do with me, ran from the furious Creatures who had now turned on one another in blame, anger, and bitterness. They hid behind the Doors of the Deep Mines and sealed them shut. Then they used ancient magic to seal me in that crystal throne. But they could not control me. My existence was beyond their comprehension; I had no physical form so therefore I could not be and yet I was. The M'arrilians sought a way to take control of me and they eventually found it.

"The Lore of Perim is long and complicated. That the M'arrilians understood what was written there is quite the feat in of itself. But being able to _use_ it was on a whole other level. There are certain text that explain how to trap souls in weapons to make them more powerful. This practice has long since been abandoned as it is a grotesque and cruel thing to do. But it interested the M'arrilians and they set their plan in motion based on what they had discovered. Any further details will not be mine to disclose; you'll have to ask…Cerberus about it when this is all over with."

"But you've taken over his body!" Seraphim interjected.

"Yes, I have possessed him, but his soul is not gone. He is still here," The Cothica tapped a claw to the side of its host's head, "Sleeping, at the moment, furious at what has transpired, unwilling to listen to me, and not answering me when I call him. In fact," The Cothica smiled a little, "He is currently seething over the fact that I am talking so casually to you."

"You make it sound as though Cerberus will get his body back." Anubis said cautiously, the end of his tail flicking in an almost cat-like manner.

"He will, if things go as I plan them to." The Cothica responded slowly, "Phelphor can give me orders, yes, but he cannot make me from doing certain things. He cannot make me kill the Creatures of Perim, he cannot make me kill my host's body, and he cannot—absolutely cannot—transport me into the Human Realm. Then again," It tapped its fingertips together, "I have my own limitations; I cannot kill my host's body through intentional suicide and I cannot use my powers to persuade those in my master's employ to do as I wish. Those were the conditions that were placed upon me should I ever be freed of my crystal prison."

"Sounds like the M'arrilians have every base covered." Seraphim frowned as she thought, "So how are we supposed to escape and how are you supposed to give Cerberus his body back."

The Cothica sighed, "I can't say now. I have to discuss my plans with Cerberus, when he decides to listen. In the mean time, you two stay out of the M'arrilians way and do everything you're told to as long as there is no threat to your life. Everything will be put right eventually…I'll see to it."

-???-

_**It was quiet but in a serene sort of way. **_

_**White walls, a towering white ceiling, and a white floor. It was neither cold nor hot but just perfect. **_

_**White flames surrounded the dais in the middle of the room, making no sound as they flickered. Lying in the middle of the dais was Cerberus, garbed in a sleeveless black robe. His red skin stood out starkly against the white.**_

"_**Cerberus." Said a female voice, soothing, calm, friendly, "Cerberus."**_

"_**Go away." Cerberus mumbled, his back to who had spoken, "I hate you. You tricked me. You lied to me. I hate you. Go away."**_

"_**Cerberus listen to me, please." The voice pleaded. **_

_**Cerberus rolled over slowly and looked around. A tall, thin woman was standing just past the flames at the edge of the dais. She was pale and her hair was stark white and short. She was wearing a flowing white dress that whispered against the floor, golden bracelets dangled from her wrists, there were five golden bands around her neck, a circlet of gold set with a ruby on her forehead, and a violet sash hung off her arms and was tied behind her back.**_

"_**What do you want?" He growled.**_

"_**To set things right." She answered, "And that is the honest truth. I am incapable of lying."**_

"_**Set it right?" Cerberus sat up straighter, the hair on his back bristling in his anger, "Set it right!? Everything's **_**gone**_**! It's ruined and gone because of you! You and those stupid M'arrilians! How can you set it right!?"**_

"_**With your help, I can. But I can't do this without you."**_

"_**And why should I trust you!? You tricked me! I have **_**nothing left**_**!" Cerberus spread his arms out as if to emphasize his point, "The M'arrilians destroyed my home! They killed my best friend! And you've taken my body—**_**my**_** freedom! Why should I do anything for you when all you've done is hurt me!"**_

_**Silence.**_

_**Cerberus glared at the Cothica's manifested form, seething, furious. The Cothica looked back at him sadly. **_

"_**It…was not my intention to hurt you…" It finally said, turning away from the rage of the UnderWorlder Prince, "Not you, or Perim, or any of your friends. But understand, Cerberus," It returned its silver-eyed gaze to him, "I have to do what is best for Perim. I am doing my best to ensure that you and your friends are not harmed but I can only do so much. If using you will save Perim from destruction then I **_**must do it**_**! I **_**am**_** Perim. I have to protect it."**_

"_**I know that…" Cerberus murmured, squeezing his eyes shut, "I just…I just wish things could be like they were before. This isn't…fair."**_

"_**Hush, I know." It was beside him suddenly, pulling him into a comforting embrace, "Everything will be better, I swear that to you. You have given up so much already, all of you have. You have lost the heart of your group, your golden chain is breaking, and even the Danian Princess' brilliant light is flickering in this utter darkness."**_

"_**You talk too much." Cerberus muttered.**_

"_**Perhaps I do." The Cothica responded, stroking Cerberus' hair gently, "But we do need to talk, Cerberus. We need to plan. Because in order to set things right, we need to escape."**_

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_Translations: Obtineo – Possessed_

_I would have liked to write more but this seemed like a good a place as any to stop. _

_So, how pissed are you now? Well, probably not that angry seeing as you know the Cothica isn't sided with Phelphor. Then again, it's not on anyone's side, really. It's neutral in the whole affair, only out for Perim. It doesn't care who rules it in the end. Selfish little thing, isn't it._

_There's my theory of the Cothica, by the way. It's a bunch of energy that has manifested over millions of years, the heart of Perim, and without it Perim would die. Sort of like the crystal thingy in Disney's Atlantis. (grins) I like that movie. Oh, yeah, they call it the Goddess because of the _Carmen of Angelus_; it sounds like a girl when it talks and it manifests itself as a girl so…yeah, that's where that came from._

_I think that pretty much covers all of that…_

_Well, I'm starting college in a couple of days so don't expect too much for a while, guys! But you all rock! (hugs)_

_Thanks so much for reading! Please keep doing so! And please review! I always look forward to what you lovely peoples have to say! It makes my day, it really does! They make me want to write more chapters just for you guys! And they also…um…SEPHIROTH VS. CHAOR!!! (Seriously, folks, who would win?) X3 _


	22. Unus Pemaneo Bonus

_Yeah, so, I'm working on this again finally when I've had my head stuck in _The Files _for a long time because it…um…I don't really have an excuse._

_Oh yeah. It pains me to say this as I myself am an UnderWorlder but…Sephiroth would whoop Chaor's butt.

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**Unus Pemaneo Bonus

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-Beyond the Doors of the Deep Mines, Psikoom City, Kinesis Hall, the Dining Hall-

Phelphor watched the Cothica from across the table. He had had it clad in a tight white shirt and pants and a long white robe with flowing sleeves that covered those horrid, poisonous spines. The Cothica did not seem to object but nor did it show any positive reaction to the outfit. In fact, it had shown very little emotion at all. Aside from the desire to "want" Prince Anubis and Princess Seraphim, it had done very little to reveal anything about itself.

Even though Phelphor liked to pretend he knew everything about the Cothica, he was far from understanding its complexity. It was an enigma to him; he could not pluck thoughts from its head like he could his subordinates and the two heirs, it carried itself with an authority of someone who had seen all and knew all, and even though Phelphor had ordered it not to talk down to him, when it spoke it was with the air of superiority. The M'arrilian leader knew one thing for sure: the Goddess had quite the ego.

It was also an extremely picky eater.

These little personality quirks were starting to annoy Phelphor. He knew it was stupid to let it all get to him but the Cothica's ability to push his buttons was incredibly accurate. He could order to stop bothering him but then it might take it as the notion that it didn't have to be anywhere near him anymore.

That was another thing it seemed to like doing (if it _liked_ anything). It seemed to find it funny to slip through loopholes in his orders. The other day he had told it to start creating a tunnel towards the Mipedian Oasis and it had started to do so. But when he'd sent some M'arrilians to check on its progress, they came running back screaming. The Cothica had (seemingly on purpose) tunneled directly into fish-dragon nest and the mother had not been happy. The Cothica had stood aside while the fish-dragon mother started attacking the investigating M'arrilians.

Phelphor was learning to be more careful with his orders but his words were getting long and lengthy as he tried to cover everything in order to stop the Cothica from finding loopholes. And it was rubbing his patience thin. Very thin.

"Why aren't you eating?" He asked it as he watched it poke at its food. It actually wasn't looking very well at all. Perhaps the UnderWorld Prince's body had not yet been ready to handle the strain of the Cothica's power.

"I am not hungry." It replied in that voice that was not quite Cerberus'; there was an almost feminine quality to it.

"Eat your food." Phelphor snapped, "You need the energy."

"I don't want to." The Cothica quivered, resisting the order. Phelphor bristled angrily.

"Want!? You cannot want, you are incapable of feeling! You are nothing but a mass of power in the body of a Creature!" He roared. The M'arrilian guards against the walls flinched, "You do not feel emotions or desires! You obey me and only me! Now EAT!"

The Cothica looked at him blankly but began to eat what had been set before it. However, it never stopped looking at Phelphor with that empty expression.

Pherlphor wondered, briefly, if it had taken what he had said as an order and was no longer feeling the emotions it claimed to have felt.

-Beyond the Doors of the Deep Mines, Psikoom City, Kinesis Hall, The Cothica's Room-

Anubis and Seraphim were waiting when the Cothica walked slowly into its room. It shut the door, locked it, and fell onto the bed on its stomach. It did not look at either of the heirs sitting on the couch nearby, keeping Cerberus' face turned towards the wall. No one said anything for a while and then Seraphim ventured a hesitant,

"Goddess?"

The Cothica turned to face them and they saw tears rolling down its cheeks even though it's eyes held no emotions. It stared at them for a while, simply letting the tears fall, then it blinked and it was as though someone had lit a candle behind those red and gold eyes; the stars and lights faded and the red and gold tint blurred together into a muddy brown.

"Guys…" It was Cerberus' voice, Cerberus' motions, Cerberus back behind the wheel, "I did something bad…"

"Cerberus! You're back!" Anubis leapt up and ran across the room, hauling the UnderWorlder off the bed and into a giant hug. Cerberus hung limply in his arms, crying, "Dude, what's wrong?"

"What do you mean you did something bad?" Seraphim asked, stepping forward and putting a hand on Cerberus' arm.

"I…I…I made the Goddess go against Phelphor's orders and…and he…" The UnderWorld Prince cringed as though it hurt to say it, "We can't escape anymore! It's impossible! I've ruined everything! It's over! All over!" He pressed his forehead against Anubis' bare, scaly chest, sobbing.

Anubis looked baffled and turned to Seraphim who rolled her eyes and pried the distraught Cerberus off the Mipedian Prince. Abruptly, Cerberus' cries ceased and he straightened, brushing tears from his face and pulling himself away from the Danian Princess. His eyes were red-gold and star flecked again.

"I apologize." The Cothica said, fixing a stray strand of black hair back into the familiar spiked style, "I thought it best that the UnderWorld Prince should be the one to tell you what had happened." It straightened its robe, "Though Cerberus was apt to blame himself I must make you understand that it was not his fault. The fault falls upon my shoulders."

"Apology accepted," Seraphim said flatly, "But there's just one thing I have to say to you."

"And that is?"

"I've been wanting to say this since you stole Cerberus' body," Seraphim pulled herself up straight and flexed her wings, "You're a girl in a guy's body."

A moment of silence and then Anubis burst out laughing.

"Why is that funny?" The Cothica scowled, "I am very insulted."

"Yeah, and I'm a pony." Anubis howled with laughter, "Seraphim's right, my bro! The _Goddess_ is in a _Prince's_ body!" And he doubled over, arms wrapped around his middle as he continued to laugh.

The Cothica looked like it was pouting, "This is not a laughing matter! My plans are completely ruined! There is no escaping Phelphor and his army anymore! We are stuck here until either the M'arrilians release us or we _die_!"

Anubis stopped laughing, "Talk about mood-killer, dude." The bonze spikes on his back clattered as he rolled his shoulders, "Way to bring the party down to nothin'."

"This is _not_ a party!" The Cothica snapped. It spun away from them, facing towards the bed, and started pacing back and forth, "Phelphor has ordered me too—no, I can't." It ran a clawed hand over its face, looking upset, "It's more than just Phelphor's orders. I can't…risk your lives."

"I thought you said that you wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice us to save Perim." Seraphim hissed, bristling at the memory.

"Things have changed." The Cothica said flatly, looking away, "A lot has changed."

"So we're stuck here!?" Anubis cried, "Stuck here until the M'arrilians destroy the rest of the tribes, ruin what's left of Perim, and then overthrow it!? No way! I'm not going to stay here and rot as a slave to those stupid fish freaks! I'm not staying!"

"You will!" The Cothica snarled, rounding on them, "Perhaps the time will come when you _can_ escape and stop the M'arrilians! Perhaps it will take years for that time to come, but it will come! But not now…not at this point in time…not…now…"

"When?" Anubis asked in a low, desperate voice.

" I cannot tell the future. I do not know." The Cothica kept its back to them, was silent for a few moments, and finally said, "Get out. Please. I need to think."

Anubis and Seraphim looked at one another, then back at the Cothica, and then left silently.

The Cothica remained staring at the wall, a blank expression written across its face. Then, slowly, it smiled.

Everything was going perfectly.

-Beyond the Doors of the Deep Mines, Psikoom City, Kinesis Hall, The Cothica's Room-

The days dragged on.

Anubis and Seraphim remained hopelessly trapped in the clutches of the M'arrilians, tormented by the thought that their friends and family were lost in the Mipedian desert, miles away, too far away to be any help. Not that they would wish their fellow tribemates into the hands of the M'arrilians.

They just wanted their families back.

The Cothica remained silent. It had said nothing since the evening where Phelphor ordered it to cease feeling. It continued to follow orders, slipping through loopholes where it could, but said nothing to Phelphor, Anubis, Seraphim, or any of the M'arrilians. The solid silence it was keeping was solemn and depressing, so unlike the Cerberus they knew, that it dampened even the boisterous Anubis' mood.

Phelphor prowled around, irritated at the lack of progress his tribe was obtaining towards their goal. He wanted to get the other tribes of Perim under his control, that was clear by his actions and temperament, but how he intended to do it and what he meant to do once he'd conquered Perim were beyond anyone but his own comprehensions.

The Mipedian and the Danian would have given anything to stop him and his tribe but under their current circumstances they were unable to do so.

The Cothica was particularly keen on keeping Anubis and Seraphim at arm's length. It continued to avoid them until the end of their fifth week trapped in Psikoom City.

"Geez, and I thought we weren't friends anymore." Anubis grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as he took a seat on the Cothica's couch, "You've been avoiding us for almost a week and a half week."

"I apologize for that," The Cothica answered softly, "But I needed to talk with both of you."

"Can't this wait until morning? It's almost midnight…" Seraphim complained, looking sleepy even as she said it.

"We are escaping." The Cothica said, "All of us. Fenrir included."

That woke them both up.

"Escaping!?" Anubis' fan-like ears perked up, "But…but Phelphor ordered you…he said you couldn't!"

The Cothica smiled, "He said I could not set you free. He never said anything about helping you escape."

"Aha…" Seraphim made an attempt to stifle her laughter, "Ahahahahahahahahahaha!" She burst out laughing, doubling over and wrapping her arms around her middle. She fanned her wings and they buzzed slightly with her good humor, "Phelphor should have watched what he said better!"

"Indeed…" The Cothica chuckled.

"But why did you tell us that escaping was impossible!?" Anubis asked and Seraphim stopped laughing.

"Because the M'arrilians were monitoring your thoughts." The powerhouse of Perim answered, "If they saw that you were thinking of escape, they would have destroyed you and kept me and your companion enslaved forever. As I told you that there was no chance of escape and had Cerberus do the same, any thoughts of such action were no longer on your mind."

"So why wait so long?" Now it was Seraphim's turn to ask questions.

"To catch Phelphor off his guard." The Cothica replied as it stood. It wore only a loose and flowing robe of pure white with a leather belt tightened at his waist, "Come, we leave tonight. Be as quiet as possible." It crossed the room and pushed the door open, looking up and down the hallway. All was silent. Even in the deepest hours of the night the M'arrilians would sleep.

The Cothica slipped out into the hallway and motioned for Anubis and Seraphim to follow. They crept as quietly as they could past the closed doors of Kinesis Hall, heading towards the path that would take them topside. It was eerily quiet and the silence made Anubis' scales prickle and itch. The Cothica led them around a corner and froze, eyes gleaming iridescent red-gold in the gloom.

"What?" Seraphim whispered.

Light suddenly flared down the hall and the trio winced as their eyes tried to adjust quickly. The Cothica hissed warningly.

"What're you doing with those two?" Asked one of the four M'arrilians barring their way.

"Escaping." The Cothica replied. That caught the M'arrilians off guard. They weren't expecting such a forward answer. And that cost them.

Anubis charged them and knocked them all aside with a well aimed Flash Kick. The Cothica threw Seraphim in front and the three of them took off. Someone would have heard and someone would come running. Seraphim soared above them while Anubis took the lead and the Cothica followed behind. A door opened and the Cothica spun and fired a blast of blue-white flames. The M'arrilians that had been about to exit fell back screeching.

"Keep moving!" The Cothica snarled for Anubis and Seraphim had paused, "Run you idiots!"

The Cothica barreled into them and got them moving. The three of them burst out of the mansion and hurtled down corridors of stone, firing attacks at anyone stupid enough to stand in their way. If it hadn't been for Seraphim's knowledge of tunnels and the Cothica using Cerberus' nose, they would have been lost. As it were, they reached the chamber where Fenrir had been murdered without any unexpected detours.

"The M'arrilians won't be able to navigate those tunnels without the map." The Cothica said, slightly breathlessly, "To get it they'll have to wake Phelphor. We've bought ourselves some time." It smashed the stone cuffs binding the limp body of Fenrir and dragged him off the chair.

"Uhm," Anubis said as the Cothica crouched beside the body, "I don't wanna be gross or anything but it's been almost a month since Fen was killed. Shouldn't he have, ya' know, decomposed?"

The Cothica grinned smugly, "When I first entered this body I immediately tapped Cerberus' most recent memories. Upon seeing Fenrir's death, I unleased a bit of magic to preserve him…by hiding it under a wave of power."

"Clever." Seraphim muttered unenthusiastically, "But you're still a girl in a guy's body."

"Please, you're insulting me." The Cothica said mockingly, kneeling over Fenrir. It held its hands over the OverWorlder's chest and whispered, "_Respiro, trova prover_."

Fenrir's body glowed blue and gold and the wound on his neck sealed itself shut. He suddenly gasped, eyes flying open, and shot upright so fast, he knocked heads with the Cothica. Anubis snickered.

"Wha—what!?" Fenrir looked around wildly, "What happened!? Where are the M'arrilians!?" He caught sight of the Cothica crouched beside him, rubbing a hand across Cerberus' forehead, "Cerberus, why're you in a dress?"

"It is a _robe_, uncultured fool." The Cothica growled, "And Cerberus is currently asleep! No! No time to explain! Up! Get up! Now! Phelphor is no doubt on his way here no—!"

A door burst open behind them.

"RUN!" Seraphim screeched, flinging a crackling web of electricity across the opening as she took to the air, "NOW, FENRIR!"

They bolted; Seraphim in the front, followed by Anubis and Fenrir, with the Cothica bringing up the rear. The M'arrilians chased after them, shouting hoarse cries of anger and rage. Attacks flared and shot down the corridors behind them smashing into walls and sending cascades of rocks tumbling on top of their heads.

"Do not hit the Cothica!" They heard Phelphor howl above the cries of his subordinates.

The black veil that marked the exit to the Doors of the Deep Mines loomed ahead and the group put on an extra burst of speed. But Fenrir was lagging behind, tired from his sudden revival. By this time, most the pursuing M'arrilians had fallen back out of sheer exhaustion or because they had been hit by the groups retaliating fire. Phelphor was now at the head of the pack. He saw an open opportunity and took it.

Raising a hand and grinning like a maniac, he fired a lethal burst of pure energy straight at Fenrir.

The Cothica happened to glance over its shoulder at the same time and saw the deadly attack heading right for the OverWorld Prince.

It jumped and knocked Fenrir aside.

The attack smashed the Cothica right in the chest and sent it slamming into one wall of the tunnel. It smashed against the wall and bounced off to land face down on the floor. A pool of black blood welled around it immediately.

"CERBERUS!" Fenrir screamed, voice cracking as he saw the damage. He leapt forward, trying to get to his best friend's body only to have Anubis grab him under the arms and drag him backwards, "NO! YOU CAN'T GO LIKE THAT! THIS ISN'T HOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE! LET ME GO! LET GO!"

"Fen..rir!" Anubis gasped, hauling his struggling friend away from the oncoming M'arrilians, "He's…gone! We have to…we have to get out of here!"

"NO! I'M NOT LEAVING HIM!"

"He's dead!" Seraphim cried, "Fenrir, we have to go now!"

"NO!" But he stumbled backwards with Anubis, "No! No…" Tears streaked his face. He took one last, tear-blurred glance at Cerberus' body, then turned and ran out the Doors with his companions.

Phelphor reached the UnderWorlder's body moments later.

He knelt in the black blood around him, face a twisted mask of anguish and fury, and rolled the boy onto his back. Glazed red-gold eyes stared up at him.

"Cothica!" He grabbed the front of the white robe that was mostly black now, "How _dare_ you! You…you broke the rules! What have you…what have you _done_!?"

"We…" Came the gasping reply, a mixture of Cerberus' voice and that of a woman's, "We did it…we…" One eye was dark chocolate brown and the other was a vivid, silvery, blue-gray flecked with gold, "We…escaped you…together…Phelphor, you will never…ever…rule Perim. All your…all your plans will…fall apart. We…are…going…to be…" Their eyelids fluttered, the lights in their eyes dimming.

"A Mugic!" Phelphor screeched, looking around for his followers but they had all chased after the escaped nobles, "Someone get me a Mugic! No!" He turned back to the failure in his hands, "You can't die! I order you not to die! I ORDER IT!"

"You cannot…stop death, Phelphor…" They were fading fast. They coughed weakly and black blood sprayed past their lips, "We are going…back to the earth…we are…we are…going to be…" Their last word whispered past their lips on their last breath,

"Free…"

And they died.

Behind the Doors of the Deep Mines, alone, Phelphor screamed his fury at the ceiling.

But no one was around to hear it.

-Perim, the OverWorld Wasteland-

There was only a few M'arrilian soldiers following after them and it didn't take the three heirs long to finish them off. And after defeating their enemies, they ran deep into the ruins of the OverWorld. Once they were sure that no one was pursuing them, they collapsed into the dirt, trying to catch their breath.

Fenrir started crying again, his face buried in his hands, shoulders heaving as he sobbed.

They all started crying.

They had regained a friend only to lose one in return.

Was that the way the world worked?

It felt like it.

To escape war in Perim, they had had to leave behind everything they'd loved.

To enjoy their time in the Human Realm, they had had to forget who they really were.

To return home again, they had lost Fenrir.

To get Fenrir back, they had lost Cerberus.

It wasn't fair.

They had fought for some much and had only found pain, and loss, and sorrow.

They had gained nothing for everything they had done.

Tears were all they had.

"Why did he do that…!?" Fenrir moaned from behind his hands, "Why did he do that!? Why!? It was s-so stupid! Why the hell did you do that, Cerberus!?" He tilted his face to the sky and screamed the words as though an answer would come from the gray mass of clouds above him. When no one said anything, he collapsed into heart-wrenching sobs, his cries echoing across the empty expanse of waste before them.

It broke Seraphim's heart to see him so weak.

Anubis was the first to regain control of himself. He stubbornly wiped the tears from his face even as more cascaded down his cheeks. Then he got to his feet, shaking slightly as he did so.

"We have to go…" He said in a voice quivering with suppressed emotions, "We have to g-get to the other tribes."

Fenrir continued to rock back and forth, face buried in his knees and his arms wrapped around his legs, his gasping sobs only slightly muffled. It was hard to watch him fall apart. Seraphim crouched down beside him and put a hand on his arm.

"Come on," She said softly, "We have to leave, Fenrir, we have to move."

"No!" Came the reply, cracked with grief, "I'm staying right here! I'm waiting for him! I'm staying here! I'm staying here…!" And he trailed off into another fit of tears.

"Fenrir!" Anubis snapped, his own tears pricking his eyes again, "Cerb's dead, okay, he's _dead_! And he's not coming back! We have to get out of here before the M'arrilians find us again! We need to move _now_! Cerberus gave his life so we could get away! So did the Cothica! Do you want to waste all that!? Do want Cerberus' death to be in vain!? You selfish coward! You're a coward, Fenrir, a COWARD!"

Fenrir didn't move for a long time. Then, slowly, stiffly, he uncurled himself and looked up at the other two with a hard light shining in his eyes. He rubbed the streaks of tears from his face and stood up, taking a deep, calming breath,

"Which way are we headed?"

Anubis smiled, turned towards the South, and they set off towards the Mipedian Desert.

* * *

_Translations: Unus Pemaneo Bonus – One Last Goodbye_

_Okay, maybe I'm just a weirdo but I got a little teary-eyed whilst writing this chapter. I was listing to a lot of sad music at the time and it might have had some added effect but, well, whatever._

_You guys were probably all like: "Yeah! Fenrir's back!" And then you went: "You killed Cerbie! You (insert word of choice here)!" Are you mad at me now? X3_

_Uuuhhhhhh…_

_Here's the songs I listened to during the sad parts if you're interested in hearing them:_

"_Alice" from Shadow Hearts: Covenant_

"_Fragments of Dreams" from Chrono Cross_

"_The Past – Personal History" from Shadow Hearts: Covenant_

"_Never Ending Sadness – A Lament" from Shadow Hearts: Covenant_

_Yeah, a lot of Shadow Hearts music. What can I say? The music was excellent for the purpose I was intending. And I was too lazy to get up and put in Wolf's Rain or FullMetal Alchemist or something. I just went with my iTunes._

_So anyway, sorry this took so long to post, thanks so much for being patient with me, and thanks for all the reviews! Please keep leaving them! I really love reading them! They make me want to write more chapters for you guys and also make the M'arrilians explodimenta! KABOOM! Mwahahahahahahahahahaha! _


	23. Quare Operor Nos Pugna?

_I completely forgot to address this issue in the last chapter. Someone asked me who Fenrir's mother and if it was Intress. Well, as much as I support Maxxor and Intress, Fenrir's mother is not Intress in this particular story. Sorry.

* * *

_

**Quare Operor Nos Pugna?

* * *

**

-Perim, The Mipedian Desert, Two Days South of the OverWorld Border-

They were exhausted.

They had traveled across the OverWorld for a five days before reaching the edge of the Mipedian Desert, scavenging what they could for food and nourishment.

But the desert was merciless. They had come unprepared and had paid for it. There was no food or water easily available to them in the harsh climate and the heat drove them to the ends of their ropes.

They were failing.

It was afternoon and they were moving onward still, afraid to stop but unwilling to go on.

Fenrir collapsed to the sand and did not move.

He was a Creature of lush forests and tropical rains, not meant to survive the harsh weathers of the endless dunes.

Seraphim fell next to him, struggled to keep going, and finally gave up, sinking into the sand as though she could vanish beneath it.

Her tribe was used to the shady underground tunnels, not the constant flare of the giant flaming sun above.

Anubis trudged slowly back to try and carry his friends but he had not the strength to do it. He stumbled to his knees and then fell onto his stomach, Fenrir on one side and Seraphim on the other.

They were doomed to die here.

No one would save them.

Cerberus had given up his life for nothing.

"I thought I saw something moving."

Anubis' ears twitched as he caught the faint sound of voices from over the dune ahead of them. He tried to call out but his throat was parch dry.

"You didn't see anything. It was your imagination. Come on, let's head back, the M'arrilians aren't stupid enough to try and brave the desert."

"No, really, I saw something."

Sands shifting and then—

"By the Goddess! They're Creatures! Come look at this! Three of 'em!"

"Stay away! They're probably under the M'arrilian's control!"

"An OverWorlder, a Danian, and a…no…it can't be! Lieutenant, it's him! It's Prince Anubis!"

"Wha…no…Anubis! My lord!"

Scrambling of activity…

Mipedian faces…

Shouts of joy…

Names…

Darkness…

Peace…

-Perim, The Mipedian Desert…-

It was the smell of water that woke him up.

Anubis cracked his eyes open and saw the domed, sand colored top of a Mipedian Scout tent. The tents were designed to look just like a dune so that enemies who happened upon it would not be able to see it unless they investigated it very, very closely.

Anubis sat up slowly, rubbing his head, and saw the bowl of water sitting beside him. He snatched it up and gulped it down, only then taking notice of with whom he shared the tent.

Fenrir and Seraphim were sitting quietly to one side, bowls of water in the laps, and near the tent entrance were two Mipedian scouts one of whom was…

"Zhade!" Anubis jumped across the tent and hugged the lithe little Mipedian as tightly as he could, "Oh, Goddess, Zhade, I've never been so happy to see another Mipedian in my entire life!"

"My Prince!" Zhade hugged Anubis in return, "You have grown so much I hardly recognized you!" He looked the Mipedian Prince up and down, "I'm sure you used to be smaller than me!"

Anubis laughed until tears pricked his eyes again.

"But how did you get back to Perim?" Asked the other Mipedian, "And what were you doing wandering the desert with Prince Fenrir and Princess Seraphim?"

"Long story." Fenrir murmured, "We heard that the other tribes are hiding out with you guys in the Mipedian Oasis and that's where we were headed."

Zhade looked at his fellow scout and then back at the nobles,

"This is true. After the M'arrilians revealed themselves and began to slaughter our fellows, we withdrew into the Oasis. The other tribes followed as they had no where left to turn."

"Then that's where we need to go." Seraphim said solidly.

"You three are in no condition to travel the desert on foot." Said the other Mipedian scout, "Zhade, can the Weightless Energy Vessel hold all five of us?"

"I don't see why not." Zhade replied, "We will rest here for tonight and—."

"We're leaving for the Oasis now." Fenrir growled and the nameless Mipedian scout bristled.

"No OverWorlder will tell me what to do!"

"We're hardly separate tribes anymore!" Seraphim cut in hotly, "We're all in this together! All of us are targets of the M'arrilians and we're all in danger of losing everything we know and love!" She clenched her fists and calmed herself down, "We can't fight amongst one another now…we have to…stick together."

There was a heavy silence between the group. No one looked at one another. Then Zhade raised his head and said in a soft voice,

"We shall head for the Oasis at once. Once there, we can reunite. And you can explain to everyone why you failed to return with the UnderWorld Prince."

The words struck needles into Fenrir's heart and he said nothing as they continued their journey across the desert.

-Perim, The Mipedian Desert, The Mipedian Oasis, Camp of the Defending Tribes-

It was dusk when they arrived at the camp. Fenrir, Seraphim, and Anubis kept low in the WEV to avoid attention. They did not want the rest of the Creatures know they were back in Perim yet.

Zhade and his companion steered the Vessel around behind a large black tent, its flaps embroidered with the four tribe crests. The nameless Mipedian scout jumped out of the vehicle and looked around before beckoning the three heirs out. Zhade followed them and ordered his companion to remain with the WEV.

"It's a meeting tent." Zhade whispered as he led them around the front and opened the tent flap, "All the leaders of the tribes should be in there."

They ducked into the tent's interior.

A sudden hush fell over everyone in the room.

"Fenrir…" Maxxor whispered hoarsely, "Is that…really you…my son…Fenrir…?"

"Dad…" Fenrir's voice cracked.

Silence and then…

"DAD!" Fenrir threw himself across the room and into his father's arms. He was almost as tall as his father, now, but that didn't matter. It didn't matter that he was sweaty and tired and bruised and battered and on the verge of breaking. It didn't matter that everyone was watching them embrace. It didn't matter that everyone could see them crying over their reunion.

All that mattered was that they were together again.

"ANUBIS!" A cry of joy and relief erupted from Prince Mudeenu and he leapt away from the table, knocking maps and plates of food into air. He swept his son into a hug and spun around, laughing and shouting joyfully.

"Princess…Seraphim?" Volash was staring across the tent at the Danian Princess in wonder, "Princess! My Lady Princess!" He shot across the tent and knelt before her, "Lady Seraphim…let me be the one to take you to your Mother Queen. Please."

"Volash…" Seraphim could barely contain her happiness, "You didn't even have to ask." They left the tent with everyone none the wiser.

"Come, come, come!" Mudeenu was saying to Anubis, an arm around his shoulders, "Tell me everything! You must! How did you get back to Perim!? How did you get here!?"

"And where is Cerberus?" Came a rumbling voice from the shadows.

Anubis and Fenrir looked around and saw Chaor standing at the opposite end of the table, his gargoyle like face a mask of worry and apprehension. The two Princes shared a look.

"We should probably start from the beginning…" Anubis said softly.

They told the three Lords of Perim everything.

From the loss of their memory in the human world, to their entrapment in Area 51, to their capture at the hands of the M'arrilians, to Fenrir's death, to Cerberus' possession, to their escape.

And Cerberus' death.

"I…I'm sorry…" Fenrir murmured, hanging his head.

"Cerberus…" Chaor shook his head, "My son…" Then he brushed past the four other Creatures and out of the tent and into the darkening sky.

"Chaor!" Maxxor called after him but Fenrir grabbed his father's wrist, stopping him.

"Dad…let him be…" The OverWorld Prince whispered, "I…let's go…somewhere else." They too left the tent.

"You have been through so much…too much." Mudeenu put his hands on his son's shoulders, "There is a darkness behind your eyes that was not there when you left." Mudeenu pulled his son close to him and held him tight, "I thought I'd lost you forever and now that you're back I'm afraid to let go of you again."

"Dad, it'll be okay." Anubis whispered, "Come on, let's go tell everyone I'm back!"

"I did promise you a feast, didn't I!?"

"You did!"

The Mipedian royals left the now empty meeting tent and wove their way through the silent camp, invisible so as not to attract attention. A group of Mipedians were waiting in the King's tent and shouted with relief and joy when they saw their Prince had returned to them.

Anubis laughed and hugged them all, glad to be back among his fellows. He was where he belonged, with his Mipedian tribemates. But there was one Mipedian in particular that he wanted to see again.

"Siado? Where's Siado?" Anubis looked around wildly for the Mipedian Stalker but he was no where in sight, "Siado?" No one was looking at him anymore. Anubis turned to Zhade, "Zhade, where's Siado?" Zhade looked at the ground between his claws, "Tiaane?" The Muge turned away, "Uro? Qwun?" But they all looked away.

"Anubis," Mudeenu lay a tentative hand on his son's shoulder, "Siado…Siado fell in the line of duty."

"No way…" Anubis stumbled back and fell into a chair, eyes wide glistening with tears, "No…Siado…it's not fair…" He burst into tears, sobbing, and buried his face in his hands, "Why do we have to fight like this!? Why are we fighting!? It's not fair! Why do so many Creatures have to die!? I can't _take_ this! It's not…it's not…" But he couldn't finish.

He could only cry.

He cried for Siado, his close friend and fellow Mipedian.

He cried for Cerberus, the UnderWorlder he'd become so close to.

He cried for his home, Perim, tarnished and ruined.

He cried for all those who had fallen, never to rise again.

He cried for all the years he's lost in the Human Realm.

But most of all he cried because he'd given up.

-Perim, The Mipedian Desert, The Mipedian Oasis, Camp of the Defending Tribes, Maxxor's Tent-

"There's…something you need to know." Fenrir looked up from the food he was eagerly shoving into his mouth to see that his father had hardly touched his meal.

"What?" The OverWorld Prince swallowed and pushed his now empty plate aside.

"It's about…your mother." Fenrir's interest was immediately perked. Maxxor hardly ever spoke of the incident that had taken his Queen's life, "The M'arrilians…they have been infiltrating our lives for a long time, orchestrating the war that has lead us here over the course of almost twenty years. They mind controlled our friends for brief moments to make them do things to the other tribes that they would normally have never done. They…they were the ones who mind controlled Lord Van Bloot and made him…made him…"

"Kill mom." Fenrir finished and Maxxor looked around at him, "I know, Father. Or, I kind of figured that. Phelphor practically told me but I…I didn't want to…" He chewed on his lip for a moment, "Are we going to fight the M'arrilians?"

"We were planning one last stand." Maxxor answered with the smirk that marked his confidence, "We'll either slaughter those twisted freaks or we'll go out with a bang and leave them something to remember us by!"

"But their mind control—!" Fenrir began but Maxxor reached around, pulled something off a shelf and set it on his son's brow, "What's this?" Fenrir pulled it off and turned it over in his hands. A golden circlet inlaid with a large sapphire and inscribed with runes along the inside rim.

"It's called a Mind Bender." Maxxor replied, taking back and setting back in its place, "The Danians created it, those genius buggers. It blocks and negates M'arrilian mind control. We lost a lot of our troops before this wonderful piece of Battle Gear came along."

"Why're they attacking us, father?" Fenrir whispered, slouching in his chair, "Why do they want to destroy us? Why did they ruin Perim? We're all Creatures! We all live in the same world! Why're they doing this!?"

"For the same reason that Lord Van Bloot betrayed Chaor." Maxxor answered, pulling his son off the chair and helping him into bed, "For the same reason the Danina Queen, Mudeenu, Chaor, and myself were constantly testing each other's borders. For the same reason the human world is in constant turmoil."

"What reason?"

"Power. Control. To rule absolute."

"What a stupid reason." Fenrir muttered, rolling onto his side and pulling the covers up to his shoulders, "Hey dad…?"

"Yes?" Maxxor paused, halfway across the tent to his own bed.

"Is Najarin okay?"

"Why would you ask that?"

"Because…Phelphor killed…Iparu…" The OverWorld Prince was drifting off.

"Yes, Najarin's alive. Severely injured, but alive."

"That's good…"

There was no further discussion.

-Perim, The Mipedian Desert, The Mipedian Oasis, Camp of the Defending Tribes, Maxxor's Tent-

It was in the deepest part of the night, the time of night when it feels like the darkness will stretch on forever and a person dreads staying awake because all the fears of daily life seem much more prominent.

It was at this time that Maxxor finally gave up trying to sleep and stepped out of his tent. The guards snapped a salute and he waved a hand in acknowledgement before setting off on a midnight stroll through the camp. The night air was cool and refreshing but filled with the smell of smoke, food, sweat, and blood. Maxxor wove his way to the edge of camp and saw a familiar outline perched on an outcropping of rock not far away. He jogged the res of the way, climbed up the rocky stretch, and sat down beside Chaor in the half-moon's silver glow.

"I take it sleep would not come to you either." The OverWorld ruler said with the barest hint of a smile.

"Takinom is asleep. I can't…bring myself to wake her." Chaor was looking at his great, clawed hands, "Do you find me pathetic, Maxxor?"

"Why should I?"

Chaor chuckled darkly, "I can throw myself into battle without second thought for my life but I cannot find the courage to tell my Queen that her son is dead."

"That does not make you pathetic, Chaor." Maxxor said firmly, "It only means you love her and do not wish to see her harmed."

There was silence between them. The nightly sounds of the war camp were distant, a background to the mourning solitude of the night.

"There used to be so much distrust between us." Chaor murmured suddenly, blue eyes glowing as they reflected silver moon beams.

"That's putting it lightly! We hated each others guts!" Maxxor laughed humorlessly and then looked towards the waning moon, his jubilance fading, "Ah, those seem like peaceful times compared to these." He sighed, arms draped over his legs.

"How did all of this begin, Maxxor?" Chaor's rhetorical question had such heaviness to it that the OverWorld Lord switched his gaze from the moon to his comrade-in-arms, "Why did we start fighting one another? Does anyone even remember that anymore?"

"No…they don't." Maxxor sighed, "And that's the shame of it."

The two rulers sat in silence for a while for a while, deep in their own thoughts, watching the moon drift agonizingly slowly towards the horizon.

"Are we off to war tomorrow, Chaor?" Maxxor asked softly though his gaze remained on lightening edge of the world.

"I suppose we are. A final battle. A last stand."

"Should we let the heirs fight?"

"They will whether we want them to or not."

"I guess you're right." Maxxor shook his head, "Is it selfish to say that I wish I had not sent Fenrir into the Human Realm? Is it selfish of me to want to have seen him grow up?"

"It's not selfish." Chaor replied after a moment or two, "At least your son came back to you, Maxxor. Mine is gone. Cerberus…" Suddenly, surprising Maxxor, the UnderWorld Lord threw his face into his hands and cried bitterly, molten tears steaming in the cold desert night air, "I keep wondering, Maxxor! I keep thinking back to the day we sent them out of Perim! Did I tell him that I loved him!? Did I tell him that he was part of my universe!? Did I let him know how important he is to me!? I can't remember! And that is what hurts most of all!"

"Chaor…" Maxxor put a hand on his companion's shoulder, "Chaor, I…I'm sure he knew. He was your son, he knew you loved him. There is no shame in crying for those we have lost, friend."

"I think I would give anything in the world to have him back here with me." Chaor said softly, rubbing the gleaming tears from his gargoyle-like face, "I would gladly have given my life in return for his, just as he gave his for Fenrir."

A sound behind them. Both rulers spun and saw Mudeenu standing on the rock.

"Mind if I join you?" The Mipedian asked and they scooted around to make room for him.

The moonlight bathed them in a soft radiance of peace.

"Anubis asked me why we fight." Mudeenu looked pained and lost as he tilted his reptilian features towards the sky, "He asked me though tears why we must fight, why so many of must die. And I had no answer for him. I could only hold him as he cried." He hung his head, "I am a failure as a father…"

"No, Mudeenu," Chaor responded sharply, "You are no failure, least of all as a father. We went our children away to be safe and maybe we weren't there for them when they were growing up," The UnderWorlder's self-assurance was back and he seemed to swell with power and the rage he held towards the M'arrilians that had taken what was most precious from him, "But we are there for them now. And we will show those scumbags that have the gull to call themselves Creatures just how fierce an army of angry parents can be!"

Maxxor roared with laughter, slapping his leg in good humor, and then jumped to his feet. He thrust a fist at the sinking moon and cried in a loud voice,

"YOU HEAR THAT YOU ROTTEN FISH!? THIS MY BE OUR LAST STAND! THIS MAY BE OUR FINAL BATTLE! THIS MAY BE OUR REQUIEM WHEN IT'S ALL OVER! BUT IN THE END…YOU...WILL…FAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLL!"

The cry rang out across the still sands of the Mipedian Desert and all the Creatures in the war camp who heard it were filled with hope.

The war wasn't over yet.

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_Translations: Quare Operor Nos Pugna? – Why Do We Fight?_

_That's gotta be, like, my most epic scene EVER!_

_Now it just comes down to the final battle. Sooooo...you don't think Cerb and the Cothica are dead, do you? (evil laughter) Do you think they're going to show up just as the tribes begin marching on the M'arrilians? Do you think they're going to save the day? Please, let me know your thoughts on the matter. It's most interesting to read the reviews you guys leave me!_

_Well, thanks for reading and please stick around for the climatic final battle scene in the next chapter! And please keep reviewing! Reviews make me get off my lazy rear and write awesomeness just for you guys! They also make flowers grow. Somehow. I'm not sure how, they just do._

_"How do they get the cream in the cupcake? Who cares! It just happens!" -Kaz, Welcome to Chaotic  
_


	24. Terminus Pugna

_I've been waiting for a long time write this chapter. But I've been writing even longer to write the one after this. But that's the next chapter. This is this chapter. _

_And this chapter is going to be epic.

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_

**Terminus Pugna**

-The Eastern Edge of the Mipedian Desert-

They had been traveling across the Mipedian Desert for a week. They traveled at night; not only was it cooler but it was also safer. The morning after the return of the three heirs, the army had set off on a march towards their battle with the M'arrilians.

"I'm fighting father." Fenrir said as shifted in wagon seat as one of the Mipedian's hauler beast dragged it smoothly across the sand, "And there's nothing you can say that will make me change my mind. You told me when I was older I could fight and—."

"I wasn't going to stop you, son." Maxxor answered, watching the stars go past overhead, "This is our last stand against our enemies. You are worthy to stand with us."

"Thanks, Dad." Fenrir murmured, leaning against his father, "I want the chance to exact revenge on those dastards for killing Cerberus."

"I know." Maxxor put his arm around his son, "I know."

Meanwhile, in a covered wagon across the convoy, there was nothing but sorrow.

"Cerberus…" Takinom whispered, hanging her head so that her long, silky, black hair curtained her face, "Are you…are you sure, Chaor? You're…you're sure he's…"

"Takinom," Chaor ran the tips of his claws down one of his queen's wings in a loving gesture, "He did something very brave and unselfish. He gave his life for his friend, his comrade, without any thought. We should honor him for it. Now," Chaor tilted Takinom's face towards him, "You have asked me that question every night since we left camp. And I have answered you the same way every time. We must put this behind us, Takinom, for war is coming."

"Tonight, then." Takinom said firmly, taking Chaor's massive hand in her own, "Tonight we hold a Passing Ceremony for him."

"On the eve of battle." Chaor responded.

"Chaor," Takinom leaned against her king, "My heart aches for him."

"As does mine."

-No Man's Land, the Mipedian and OverWorld Border-

The fire was blue.

Neither Anubis nor Seraphim had seen a Passing Ceremony before.

But Fenrir had; he had been very, very young at the time but he remembered the ceremony that had marked the death of his mother.

And the fire was always blue at a Passing Ceremony.

Blue light.

Sad light.

It cast everything into the depths of an ocean of sorrow. An eerie glow of light blue deepened shadows and sharpened edges. Everything looked surreal. And sad.

Chaor and Takinom stood next to each other on one side of the fire while Fenrir, Seraphim, Anubis, Mudeenu, Volash, Maxxor, H'earring, and a few guards were stationed on the other side.

No one said anything.

A Passing Ceremony was a remembrance; to reflect on the memories of the one who had moved on to a better place. Tears were an abundance. Silence was heavy.

"Farwell, on your final journey, Cerberus, son of King Chaor and Queen Takinom, Prince of the UnderWorld." H'earring said slowly and tossed a handful of dust into the blue flames. The fire turned crimson, the color of the UnderWorld, flared high into the sky, and then flickered out and died.

The group dispersed.

Fenrir walked back into the camp with Seraphim on one side and Anubis on the other. The sand that they had been traveling across for the past week had changed to hard, black rock and it gleamed like obsidian in the dark night.

"I…" Fenrir started to say something and the words got stuck in his throat. He coughed once, twice, and began again, "When I died…I was in agony. I hurt so badly." Seraphim made a choked noise at the memory and Anubis didn't hide the ripple of anger that made his bronze spikes clatter together, "And then, slowly, it faded away and I was…moving into this brilliant white light. And then I was on a boat of silver and gold and glass, sailing across a sea of water that seemed to be made of liquid silver. And then there was shore of sand so white it gleamed like snow and a gate that looked like it was made of marble or something. Light refracted off of everything in rainbows and it was dazzling and beautiful."

"A…gate?" Seraphim repeated hesitantly. The three of them slowed down, letting fellow Creatures pass them by. Fenrir kept speaking in a low voice,

"Yeah, a gate. And then I went through it. There were fields of emerald green grass as far as the eye could see…and there wasn't. There was a sky that was impossibly blue…and there wasn't. There were flowing rivers of crystal clear, sparkling water…and there wasn't. There were mansions and tall towers of marble and stone…and there wasn't. There were forests of trees whose branches reached higher than sky scrapers…and there wasn't. There were paths of gold, lined in silver and dusted with precious gems…and there wasn't. It was all there and yet it didn't seem to be there at all." They had stopped walking now and Fenrir was looking up at the star speckled sky without really seeing it,

"It was a place so beautiful it's impossible to describe; so serene, and wonderful, and far better than any world that exists here. It was…it was like it was made of the most heart-warming and breathtaking feelings anyone could ever feel: being caught in a summer rain with someone you love, the warm touch of sunlight on you skin, the comfort of a dog sleeping by your side at night, the smell of cinnamon and cream on a morning when you wake up and know someone has made breakfast for you, climbing to the top of a mountain and looking at the wonders around you, relaxing in the shade with your friends, not talking, just enjoying the company…" He tilted his head around to look at his companions, the strand of white hair on the side of his face drifting lazily over his shoulder,

"That's what that place felt like. I think…I think it was Heaven…"

"Do you think that's where Cerberus is?" Anubis asked as they set off again.

"Yeah. Count on it." Fenrir replied solidly, "He wouldn't be anywhere else."

"For sure." Seraphim added.

"For sure?" Fenrir scoffed, looking at her with an eyebrow raised.

"What?"

"I've never heard you say _that_ before."

"Shove off."

"Guys," Anubis cut in, "Save the fighting for tomorrow. You're gonna need it."

They looked at one another, acknowledging the bonds they shared without even speaking, turned, and went to bed.

The night closed in around them.

-No Man's Land, the Mipedian and OverWorld Border-

The army was truly a sight to behold.

The four tribes, united against a common enemy, stood in ranks, ready to march on the M'arrilians. The brilliant silver and blue armor of the OverWorlders was like a cool pool of water, the dark bronze of the Danians and the golden armor of the Mipedians created a gradient effect across the ground, and the dark red of the UnderWorlders was a dangerous mass of anger out for blood in vengeance for their fallen prince. Every soldier there wore a Mind Bender.

In the middle of the OverWorld army, Tangath Toborn stood sentry next to Fenrir. The OverWorld Prince had a shoulder guard on his right that rose to his jawline and arched back over his shoulder. Steel vanbraces covered his upper and lower arms, a breast plate of similar steel twisted across his chest and over his back, greaves were strapped over his black leather pants, and knee-high boots with spiked toes crunched the rock beneath his feet. All the steel in his ensemble was dark cerulean lined in blue silver with the OverWorld crest raised in gold on his chest, shoulder guards, and the sapphire and diamond circlet on his forehead.

His left, lower arm vanbrace was wide over his wrist and expanded back past his elbow, acting as a shield he could raise in defense. An ivory handled falcata with a blade made of crystal and carved with runes was sheathed in a leather and steel case at his side. A baldric across his shoulders holstered a Cyclance behind his back.

"Are you ready for this?" Tangath Toborn asked, training his eyes on the horizon where it rose into a hill. The defending tribes' army was stationed on a hill opposite and a valley stretched out before them.

Fenrir was about to reply to his mentor when a shout from the front ranks made everyone look around,

"Look! It's the M'arrilians!"

And sure enough, it was. A wide line of them appeared at the top of the hill across the valley. Fenrir growled low in his throat and wasn't surprised to hear the noise echoed by the OverWorld Warrior beside him.

"Cheeky dastards." Tangath snarled, his main bristling in his anger, "They planned to attack us."

"Maybe this way," Said one of the soldiers next to Fenrir, "It's better. No Man's Land. The final fight."

"They are a monstrous race, aren't they?" Tangath Toborn muttered as the M'arrilians crested the hill.

"Heh, yeah, and ugly too." Fenrir replied with a snort.

"Fellow Creatures!" Maxxor, Chaor, Mudeenu, and the Danian Queen's Head Guard, Volash (for the Queen could not fight), stood before the army but it was Maxxor who was speaking, "This tyranny and devastation has gone on long enough! Now is the time to stand and _fight_ this madness!"

"They have cheated us from our homes!" Chaor snarled and there was an angry roar of agreement, "They have destroyed our lands! They have killed our _families_! We strike them hard! And we OBLITERATE THEM!"

The reply from the rest of the army was deafening. Voices rent the air with hoarse cries, curses, screams of vengeance, and oaths of blood, shields slammed together with Battle Gear or mailed fists, and Creatures stomped their feet, causing the earth to vibrate.

Fenrir raised his shielded arm into the air, pointing his fist at the sky, and screamed a voice that was lost to all but himself and Tangath Toborn,

"FOR CERBERUS!"

"Creatures!" Mudeenu cried above the din, arcing his electrically charged Battle Gear up, "ATAAAAAAACCCCKKKKKK!" He swung his weapon down and aimed it at the on coming M'arrilians.

Fenrir was caught in the tide of bloodthirsty Creatures surging forward. He drew his falcata with a shout of defiance and leapt forward. Across the valley, the M'arrilians moved forward as well.

Minutes later, the two sides clashed.

Sparks flew into the air as shield and blade or blade and blade met, the snarls of rage from both sides were wild, fire and smoke curled upwards, and explosions rocketed through the overcast sky.

Fenrir brought his shield up and slammed a M'arrilian aside before spinning and chopping its head off. He didn't even stop to look at it; so fueled by adrenaline as he was; he simply kept fighting.

"Tangath!" The Prince shouted and his mentor spun around, jumping right over Fenrir to cleave the M'arrilian who'd been overpowering the Prince.

Across the battle field, Anubis was keeping a wide circle around him with the spiked ball mounted on the end of his tail and the heavy iron mace in his hand. Wide shoulder guards stood out from neck and a chainmail cloak hung off his shoulders. Bronze chainmail was partially hidden under a brown leather and gold encrusted chest plate. Steel and leather guards covered his lower legs and arched up over his knees. He dug his bronze claws into the rock, spun, and smashed the brains out of an oncoming M'arrilian. Blue blood exploded over the ground.

"Come and get it you stupid fish freaks!" Anubis shouted, slamming his tail into the ground and sending dangerous shards of rock shooting outwards, "Rrrraaaahahhhhhhaaaaaaggggggggg!!"

Seraphim patrolled the skies with Volash beside her. She carried a Pyro Blaster on one hip, a series of daggers on the other, and an automatic crossbow that fired exploding bolts in her hands.

She shared air space with Frafdo, Takinom in her Shadow Knight Armor, Rarran, Ghuul, and even the cowardly Dractyl. They swept out over the edges of the M'arrilian army, firing attacks and dropping flames on the heads of their enemies before veering back to the safety of their own army.

"I hope you suffer!" Seraphim shouted, leveling her crossbow at a M'arrilian. A narrow beam of energy lanced through one of her wings and she screamed in agony, spiraling towards the ground.

"Princess!" Volsh shouted, diving after her.

"Seraphim!" Fenrir cried and was knocked down by a war hammer in the back. His breath left him and he was left gasping on ground, trying to breath.

Tangath saw his Prince fall but he could not reach him, surrounded by enemies as he was. The OverWorld Warrior roared and the power behind his voice sent the nearby M'arrilians flying. But it was not enough. He would not reach the Prince in time.

But as most of these things go, something else did save Fenrir.

With an explosion of dislodged rock, a mass of red, thorn colored vines whipped out of the ground and smacked the nearest M'arrilians away from the OverWorld Prince. Tangath Toborn dodged to his charges side and helped him up. Fenrir made to attack another M'arrilian but a wall of the same vines erupted out of the ground in front of him, causing him to stumble backwards into Qwun, the nearby Mipedian Scout. The M'arrilian he'd been fighting was pushed back by the whipping plants and, as the Overworld Prince looked around in wonderment, he saw the same thing happening across the battle field.

The M'arrilians were being separated from the defending tribes.

"Tangath!" Fenrir spun to find his father's Captian of the Guard only to skip backwards as more vines snapped at his feet, "Tangath, what's happenig!"

"Goddess if I know!" Tangath Toborn replied, bearing his fangs as the vines kept him away from the retreating M'arrilians while simultaneously pushing the four defending tribes back as well. Soon, the two armies were separated once again by the valley between the two hills. The vines shrank back into the stone without a trace as though nothing had happened.

No one moved

Suddenly, the ground in the rocky valley bulged a little and sent a rumble beneath everyone's feet. The rocky bulge pushed outward even more and several Creatures fell to their knees as the earth shook again. The bulge was about the size of an average Battalion soldier (average human height of an adult male) and egg-shaped. Everyone peered at it curiously. The stone suddenly cracked at the top and peeled away revealing…

"It…it can't be…!" Fenrir breathed.

* * *

_Translations: Terminus Pugna – Final Battle_

_Ahahahahahahahaha! I give you cliffie! Mwahahaha—OH MY GOSH THEY'RE GONNA KILL ME! Help me! Oh my gosh! (runs and hides in her steel bunker) You can't get me in here! I am protected by forces beyond your imagination! Bwahahahaha!_

_Ahem._

_Yes._

_Anyway, another (hopefully) fulfilling chapter of NTBL. I like it. There are so many questions to be answered here:_

_Who will win the final battle? Is Seraphim alive or has the Danian Princess met an untimely death? Can the defending tribes really stop the M'arrilians? And what has come out of the rocky egg?_

_Find out the answers to these questions and more, next time on_

_NICE TO BE LOVED!_

_Dun-dun-duuuunnnnnn!_

_Tee hee. _


	25. Reverto of Abyssus Canius

_Now _this_ chapter…this chapter will blow your freaking mind. X3

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_

**Reverto of Abyssus Canius**

-Somewhere, An hour and a half earlier…-

"_**Don't you want to help your friends?"**_

"_**They don't need me. They don't need a…a fake."**_

"_**You are not a fake. You are an original. You are simply—."**_

"_**Twisted. Wrong. Admit it, I defy the laws of nature. I defy the laws of Perim itself! It's just better if I don't show up again."**_

"_**You wrong yourself."**_

"_**Like I care what you think."**_

"_**You are so stubborn. Don't you want to help?"**_

"_**Don't ask stupid questions, of course I want to but I…I'm scared."**_

"_**Of losing?"**_

"_**No, I know I can beat them but I don't…I'm scared of what'll happen after it's all over. What if…they don't want me around anymore?"**_

"_**You have nothing to fear. I cannot see the future but I know that love between friends and family is something not so easily broken."**_

"_**You're sure?"**_

"_**Of course. I have seen it over the course of thousands of years. Do you want to go back now?"**_

"_**I...yes."**_

"_**You have great power and a strong heart. Use them both to destroy the M'arrilians."**_

"_**You know, for an almighty power source, you say some pretty lame stuff."**_

"_**I think I picked it up from you."**_

"_**Aha…ahahahahahahahahahahaaaaaaaa!"**_

-Perim, No-Man's Land, Present time-

"It…"it can't be…" Fenrir breathed, his eyes wide with shock and wonder, "Cerberus…but it can't…be…I saw him die…"

But there was no one else it could be.

Only Cerberus had that lanky pose of tense anger, only Cerberus would twist his tail around so the spikes raked across the rock and made sparks shoot into the air, and only Cerberus could let out that snarling bark of a shout that let you know he was totally pissed.

"Phelphor!" He roared and it echoed eerily in the silence, "I challenge you to one-on-one combat! No Battle Gear! No Mugics!"

"On what grounds!" The M'arrilian shouted back.

"Betrayal, capture, and slaughter of the royal families! And because I hate your stinking, rotten guts!" Cerberus' taunt was met with jeers from the other tribes around him.

"What's he _doing_!?" Anubis had appeared at Fenrir's side, "That's Cerb, right? He died, right? And now he's challenging _Phelphor_!?"

"Shhhh!" Tangeth Toborn growled as the M'arrilian leader handed his Battle Gear over to a subordinate and descended down the hill to draw level with Cerberus. The UnderWorld Prince flexed his clawed fingers and thrust his arms out on either side of his body. A wave of energy rolled away from him and created a giant, transparent dome of energy. An arena to fight in.

"You've learned some tricks." Phelphor sneered.

"The Cothica." Cerberus snapped, fists clenched, "Here's the deal: I win and you and your tribe disappear off the face of Perim! _Forever_!" His eyes narrowed, "I'll do it myself if I have to."

"And if I win," Phelphor said evenly as though he made these sort of deals every day, "The other tribes surrender, you come with us to become the vessel of the Cothica once more, and we take over Perim."

"Deal." Cerberus spat and crouched low to the ground, arching his tail and pointing his sharpened claws at his adversary. Phelphor, likewise, clenched his fists and raised his arms, ready to fight.

And then they _moved_.

Neither Anubis nor Fenrir could hold back their sharp intakes of breath. Not only were the two combatants fast but they were also—and there was no other word for it—elegant. Even Phelphor's massive bulk seemed graceful. Cerberus glided across the ground, spinning and twisting as he dodged and threw punches and kicks.

Phelphor whipped around and launched a savage punch. Cerberus jumped, grabbed the M'arrilian's wrist with both hands, used the momentum of his leap to launch himself over Phelphor's head, and slammed the other Creature to the ground. His tail lashed down, spikes ready to gouge into Phelphor's belly. But the M'arrilian grabbed the UnderWorlder's tail, rolled across the rock, and pinned him, belly down, to the earth. Cerberus snarled and his spines stuck out straight. He swept an arm back but Phelphor was already a yard away and firing a barrage of energy at his opponent.

Cerberus' eyes widened and he scrambled to his feet, bolting around the arena as Phelphor continued to fire at him. The UnderWorld Prince suddenly dug his heel into the ground, spun, and shot a stream of flames from his palms. Phelphor shouted a wordless cry and dodged out of the way. Both Creatures paused, panting heavily, and glared at one another.

"We are evenly matched." The M'arrilian grinned wickedly, "But I have _years_ of experience on you, boy. You will fall in the end."

"You think so?" Cerberus snorted, straightening and lifting the corner of his lip to show his fangs, "You're an idiot if you think the Cothica only taught me a few magic tricks and some moves." His glowing red eyes narrowed, "It unlocked _everything_."

The UnderWorld Prince crossed his arms in front of his chest and tensed; even his tail was still. For a moment, he stood perfectly motionless with his eyes closed. Then brilliant red orbs flashed open and glared at Phelphor.

"Seal Release: Level Beta!" His voice crackled with power, "_Regius Crour_!"

Flames rippled to life on his wrists and ankles, the fur on his back bristled and erupted into sparking fire, and more flames wreathed the spiked end of his tail. Phelphor's cocky grin vanished and his eyes gleamed in anger.

"So you've learned to control the power of your royal blood." The M'arrilian sneered, "That is not enough. You will still fall and take the rest of Perim with you."

"Stop talking," Cerberus growled, his rage contorted face looking terrifying, lit beneath as it was by his flames, "You're hurting my ears with all your self-righteous crap!"

"Self-righteous—why you insolent little worm!" Phelphor roared, "I saved the lives of you and your miserable friends from the Human Realm! You've—gggghhhhkkkk!"

Phelphor made an odd noise as Cerberus slammed his feet into the M'arrilian's chest and closed his clawed hands around Phelphor's non-existent throat.

"I told you to _stop talking_!" Cerberus bared his fangs, "I don't _want_ to kill you but I _have_ to kill you or Perim will die!" The ferocity faded from his face for a moment and he looked, briefly, like a boy who'd simply lost his way, "This is _my_ home. And I'll do whatever it takes to protect it!"

The M'arrilian's hand shot up and grabbed one of Cerberus' horns, yanking the Prince's head to the side. Cerberus howled in pain and raked his claws down Phelphor's face, the flames on his wrist exploding outward and licking at the M'arrilian's flesh. Phelphor kicked Cerberus off him, grabbed the Prince's ankle, lifted him into the air and repeatedly slammed him back into the ground. Then he grabbed the boy's other leg, hefted him up, started spinning…and let fly. Cerberus smashed into the barrier, bounced off it, and skidded across the rock, coming to rest facedown some ten feet from Phelphor.

He didn't move.

"You see," Phelphor spoke as though he was lecturing a room full of misbehaving children, "Even with the aid of your "_Regius Crour_" I can still beat you." The M'arrilian wiped some blood from his face, "Not without a scratch, maybe, but all the same…"

Cerberus groaned and shifted but did not get up. It looked as though his arm was broken. Phelphor sneered and started to walk slowly towards the fallen Prince; he was in no hurry, utterly convinced that Cerberus wouldn't be going anywhere.

"Come on…" Fenrir was whispering, hopping from foot to foot, "Come _on_, get up…"

"Cerb," Anubis said under his breath, "You can do it, man! Get up! Get _up_!"

And he did.

The UnderWorld Prince whimpered and made an attempt to get to his feet. On the first and second tries, his limbs gave out and he kissed dirt but on the third try he managed to get into a shaky, standing position. By that time, Phelphor had covered half the distance between them and was still moving at his leisurely pace. Cerberus coughed and a trickle of black blood ran out of the corner of his mouth.

"Where's all your anger gone, Ker Berethrou?" Phelphor derided. He raised a hand and fired a small burst on energy at Cerberus. It punched the UnderWorlder in the stomach and he stumbled backwards a little, "Where's all that rage that was fueling you before?"

Cerberus didn't answer, just starred with glazed, half-lidded eyes at the advancing M'arrilian, swaying back and forth on the spot. Fenrir's hair stood on end and Anubis' scales prickled. Seraphim, supported by a Mandiblor, came up beside them, her injured wing quivering but treated. Her antenna twitched.

"Do you guys feel that?" The Danian Princess asked in a hushed voice, "That…that power?"

"Uh-huh." Fenrir nodded slowly, keeping his eyes on the dome, "I think…it's Cerberus."

"He's cookin' something up, dudes!" Anubis smiled, the spikes on his back clinking as he shivered.

Inside the energy shield, Phelphor had noticed the building power as well, "What else can you do!? You're at the end of your rope, as the human phrase goes!" He was only a short distance away now and picking up the pace.

Cerberus suddenly came to life.

"Seal Release: Level Gamma!" The UnderWorlder raised his hands over his head, glowing red energy boiling off his form and outlining it in a deadly crimson light, "_Permaneo!"_

The energy swirled around and became a tornado of red that obscured Cerberus. The ferocity of it knocked Phelphor backwards and he threw up an arm to keep the dirt from his eyes. The tornado of power spun faster and faster, getting slimmer and slimmer until it bent itself into a humanoid shape standing on the ground. The light pulled in on itself, squeezing into a sphere the size of a person's head, and leaving behind the transformed Cerberus.

His lower half was the legs of a powerfully built canine with sleek black fur, the flames that had formally lit his body were gone, and the end of his tail now carried a jagged, ivory arrowhead. In his left hand, the spines on his arm raised, he held the glowing sphere of red energy. His right arm, however, was now a gleaming blade of silver steel that refracted and splintered the red light.

Phelphor's mouth was hanging open, revealing his pointed teeth, but he quickly snapped it shut, "This…I don't know what sort of power the Cothica gave you but—."

"The Cothica didn't give me this." Cerberus' voice was a guttural snarl that made his friends shiver to hear it, "I was _born_ with the _Adsigno Eximo_. The Cothica simply unlocked it." His burning crimson eyes narrowed and seemed to flash briefly towards the defending tribes but it could just have been a trick of the light, "But why're we talking? I thought this was a fight."

Phelphor chuckled but it was humorless.

And the moved again and this time there was no question of who had the advantage. Cerberus was five times as fast as he had been in _Regius Crour_ and Phelphor was struggling to keep up with the UnderWorlder.

Cerberus launched the mass of energy at Phelphor who tried to dodge it but failed. The M'arrilian was blasted back against the wall of the barrier. He leapt up again and ran at his foe. Cerberus kicked out with his heavy paws and knocked Phelphor back. The M'arrilian quickly regained his balance and fired glowing shots of energy at Cerberus. Cerberus flicked up his bladed arm and the blast ricocheted off, hitting the shield and dissipating. He smirked and Phelphor bristled.

"Is that all you got, fish-face?" Then he ran full tilt at Phelphor, dragging his blade on the ground. Sparks shot into the air. Phelphor crouched, ready to dodge, but Cerberus stopped, spun, and slashed into the M'arrilian's side with his arrowhead tail. Blood splattered the ground and Phelphor howled, launching himself at Cerberus. Cerberus turned to meet him, raising his blade, but Phelphor landed on his chest and pinned him down.

"Enough!" The M'arrilian snarled, stomping his foot down on Cerberus' right arm to keep the blade away, "You have nothing." Cerberus raised his left arm and tried to claw Phelphor but the M'arrilian pinned down that arm too. Cerberus started panicking, chest heaving. He could not attack, "This power I can take from you as surely as I can take your life." He flexed the fingers of one hand and his arm molded into a tentacle that looped around Cerberus' neck, "You are nothing but the spoiled Prince of an egotistical ruler used to getting his way!"

"Don't…talk like…that about…Chaor!" The UnderWorlder hissed and made a strangled noise as the tentacle tightened on his throat.

"Your life ends _now_." Phelphor started laughing manically even as his body rippled and bulged.

"Cothica save us…" Seraphim whispered hoarsely, leaning heavily on her Mandiblor companion. Fenrir and Anubis could only gape in horror.

"By the Goddess…" Tangath Toborn's sword fell from his limp fingers and clattered to the ground, "We're doomed. We're all doomed…"

Inside the dome, Phelphor had become a round, tentacle covered…thing. One of those tentacles held Cerberus in the air, making him look small in contrast to Phelphor's large size. The UnderWorld Prince was struggling; kicking, clawing, jabbing with his tail, slicing with his blade, gasping, trying, desperately to breathe.

"Not like this…" Fenrir moaned, shaking his head as though by doing so this horrible nightmare would vanish, "Please…not like this…we can't…lose him again…"

"You see," Phelphor's voice was liquid-like as though he was speaking under the water, "Your attempts to stop me were futile. You will fall and so will Perim." The M'arrilian wrapped another tentacle around Cerberus' middle, pinning the Prince's arms to his sides, and withdrew the stranglehold he'd had on Cerberus' throat.

Cerberus growled deep in his throat but the growl became a scream of agony as Phelphor squeezed him tightly. Cerberus writhed in his enemy's grasp, screaming as he was squeezed tighter and tighter. Suddenly he coughed and black blood sprayed out his mouth. Phelphor must have broken a rib and the rib had punctured one of Cerberus' lungs.

"Stop it!" Anubis cried, trying to run forward only to have Qwun stop him, "Stop it! Please! Stop it…stop it…!" He clenched his teeth and tried not to cry, "Not Cerberus…not Cerb…"

Cerberus coughed up more blood. Phelphor wrapped his tentacle around the UnderWorlder's tail, hefted him up and smashed him into the ground. They could hear Cerberus screaming. Seraphim was shuddering, holding tightly to the Mandiblor beside her, staring with wide-eyed fear at the scene going on below her. Phelphor lifted Cerberus' limp form high into the air and threw him to the rock below.

Cerberus did not move this time.

Blood was leaking out from numerous scrapes and cuts across his body, a huge gash was cut into his shoulder and they could see the muscle beneath, and one of his horns had snapped off and was lying on the ground a few feet away. Phelphor ground it to dust with a well-aimed beam of energy. Then he leered down at the broken form below him, floating in the air as he was,

"Bow, ungrateful maggot."

At first, there was no response and Fenrir thought for sure that his friend was dead once more. Then Cerberus shifted slightly and they could hear his pain-cracked voice say mockingly,

"B-bow?"

Cerberus pushed himself to his hands knees, shaking with the ache of his mutilated body, "To the l-likes of y-you?" Hs eyes were completely crimson with no visibly white, pupils, or irises, "Heh…n-n-not a chance in H-Hell!"

"Ingrate!" Phelphor roared and swung out a heavy blow towards Cerberus' skull.

* * *

_Translations: Reverto of Abyssus Canius – The Return of Cerberus, Regius Crour – Royal Blood, Permaneo – The Lost, Adsigno Eximo – Seal Release_

_Opps. Another cliff-hanger. Um. I'm sorry? It wasn't supposed to be a cliffhanger, really, it wasn't. But it seemed like a good place to stop at the time so, you know, I did. Please don't kill me._

_On the other hand…_

_Is Cerberus kick butt or what!? Yeah, that's right! The UnderWorld Prince saves the day! Hoo-rah! But is all is as it seems? (gasp) That was almost a spoiler! Shame, shame on you EmptyHeart, shame!_

_Oh, so, this whole chapter and the beginning of the next one were all prewritten in a notebook. I have been planning this scene for a long time. I wrote this scene out when they were still in the human world. In, like, chapter four or something. Yeah. Some things changed, Seraphim was not originally shot but I had to throw in some drama and I extended the fight scene a little bit but otherwise it follows the notebook pretty closely. _

_Well, stay tuned for the next chapter, guys, 'cause it will seriously blow your mind. In a good way. Not in a M'arrilian way._

_Thanks for reading and for all the reviews! Please keep reviewing! I love reviews! Also…MAXXOR VS. DARTH VADER!_

_Now who wins _that_ one? X3 _


	26. Abyssus Incendia Ratio Tempastas

_I know I said I'd post a chapter yesterday but the Document Uploading system was down so I couldn't. But now I can.  
Prepare yourselves…for the end of the final battle.

* * *

_

**Abyssus Incendia Ratio Tempestas**

-Perim, No-Man's Land-

"Bow, ungrateful maggot."

At first, there was no response and Fenrir thought for sure that his friend was dead once more. Then Cerberus shifted slightly and they could hear his pain-cracked voice say mockingly,

"B-bow?"

Cerberus pushed himself to his hands knees, shaking with the ache of his mutilated body, "To the l-likes of y-you?" Hs eyes were completely crimson with no visibly white, pupils, or irises, "Heh…n-n-not a chance in H-Hell!"

"Ingrate!" Phelphor roared and swung out a heavy blow towards Cerberus' skull.

"Seal Release: Level Alpha!" The words split the very air with their power, "_Abyssus Canius_!"

Red light and power exploded outward like a great wind. Anubis staggered and fell to his knees, Seraphim tightened her grip on her Mendiblor, and Fenrir skidded backwards into Tangath Toborn.

"What's happening!?" The OverWorld Prince could barely hear Anubis' shout over the roaring in his ears, "I can't see!"

Smoke was billowing within the shield, thick and brown-gray and dancing with red light. Something thudded into the earth and sent a rumble beneath their feet.

"What in the—!?" Fenrir's choked words were covered by a great roar. It was as deep as thunder but edged with a scream like a dying animal. It made his skin prickle with fear.

Phelphor was suddenly slammed into the shield and he slid down it to the ground. The smoke had mostly dissipated by then and the onlookers could see a massive, hulking form through the claring haze. If Phelphor was large, then this new thing was monstrous. The roar came again and Tangath Toborn winched, covering his sensitive ears. But Seraphim's gasp drew the OverWorlder's gaze back.

He was rendered speechless.

Looming almost to the top of the dome was a giant three headed dog. It's eyes were a glowing blood red, dark blue horns curled from its heads, and its fur was rippling waves of sleek black that seemed to suck in the light. Instead of a tail, there was a dark blue snake with black fur trailing up its back to the red horns on its head that hissed and flicked its tongue, showing sharp fangs. The head on the left snapped his jaws, the one the right growled, showing canines, and the head in the middle let out that ear-splitting roar again.

"That's Cerberus…" Seraphim whispered in a strangled sort of way. She was shivering in the hold of her Mandiblor, eyes wide as she stared at the great beast, "I can feel it…that's him…"

As if to confirm this, the left head opened his mouth, letting his tongue loll about, and spoke in an echoing tone that was Cerberus' voice, "Get up, Phelphor."

Then the right head bared his fangs in a mocking sort of way, "I know that didn't kill you."

The middle head bent down and snorted, "I can hear you breathing."

Phelphor shuddered and floated shakily into the air again, tentacles waving, "Abomination." He snapped.

"Tyrannical scum!" All three heads snarled and it sounded eerie, like surround sound in a cave, "You don't care about Perim! You don't care about the Creatures! You don't _deserve_ to conquer us!"

"Don't talk down to me!" Phelphor retorted. Beams of energy shot from his eyes and smashed into Cerberus' chest. The great beast reeled backwards and raised a paw, swiping at Phelphor. The M'arrilian dodged away and shot more energy beams. Cerberus lunged at him, heads snapping, and barreled the M'arrilian into the wall of barrier. Phelphor shouted wordlessly and fired a blast of acid towards the right head. The attack frothed against the right head's muzzle and he howled and the whole body jerked back. Phelphor freed himself and fired more energy beams from his eyes. Cerberus crouched low to the ground and avoided them and, even while the right head was whimpering and shaking itself as smoke curled from its face, launched himself at Phelphor.

The M'arrilian flew around the barrier and tried to attack Cerberus from behind before the UnderWorlder could turn himself around. But Phelphor had forgotten about the snake head. It uncoiled itself and got a hair's breadth away from Phelphor before he pulled back. The snake hissed angrily as Cerberus spun around and swatted the M'arrilian with razor sharp, catching Phelphor in the side and sending him crashing to the ground.

"Fight me like you mean it!" The left head snarled, hackles raised.

"Fight!? Fight!?" Phelphor rose into the air again and aimed all his tentacles at Cerberus, "I'll show you a fight, pup!" And he fired crackling energy at the UnderWorlder again. But the snake head simply zipped forward, opened its mouth, and swallowed the attack.

Phelphor visibly lost whatever retaliating spirit he had left. He was starting to give up.

"He's actually going to do it." Anubis muttered, "Dude…he's actually going to beat Phelphor!" The Mipedian Prince raised a fist into the air and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Go Cerb! You can do it, my bro!"

"Take him down, Cerberus!" Fenrir cried, caught up in the hope radiating from his companions, "Make that dastard pay for what he's done to us!"

Cheers went up through the ranks of the Creatures around them; voices raised in support, Battle Gear clattering and gleaming in the air. The three heads of Cerberus added their piercing roars to the din. Then six eyes narrowed and focused on Phelphor.

"I could say something really corny and dramatic." The left head pinned his ears back angrily.

"Something like: "The countdown to your demise began the moment you chose me to be the vessel of the Cothica."" The right head added with a rumbling snort that sounded like a laugh.

"but I'm something of a pacifistic UnderWorlder." The middle head flicked his ears flicked back and forward again, "And this has been drawn out like a B-movie."

"You think you're being witty, don't you mutt!?" Phelphor snapped.

Cerberus bristled at the comment and all three heads growled at the same time. Fenrir felt the rumble deep in his chest. A flicker of flames appeared around the corners of the three heads' mouths.

"Stop! Wait, I surrender! Let me live!" Phelphor begged but Cerberus did not respond. More orange-red tongues of fire flickered out from between his bared fangs.

"Cer-ber-us!" Anubis was chanting, pumping a fist in the air, "Cer-ber-us! Cer-ber-us!" The rest of the defending tribes caught up the chant as well and soon the name was ringing across the battlefield,

"CER-BER-US! CER-BER-US!"

"_Shut up_!" Phelphor screeched, panic making his voice crack, "Silence!" The M'arrilian didn't know whether to flee or attack and since the first option was eliminated by the shield, he attacked, "Acid Wave!" Glowing green liquid fired from the tips of Phelphor's tentacles, heading right for Cerberus' heads.

"No!" The Mandiblor holding Seraphim shouted. But he needn't have worried. The snake head once again darted in front of the main body and let out a terrifying hiss that turned the air before it into a whirlwind. The acid splattered backwards against the shield and dripped down the sides to vanish into the ground.

"Sssssstupid." Cerberus' voice came from the snake as it drew back, waving back and forth, "Can't sssssstop me like that."

Phelphor's eyes darted around, looking for something, anything, to help him.

"Too late.

"Torrent of Flames!" Roaring fire streamed out of the mouths of the three heads of Cerberus. They collided with Phelphor, who screamed in agony, and roiled up the sides of the dome. The dissipated in a manner of seconds, giving the onlookers a clear view of what had happened.

While Phelphor had been distracted with being burnt alive. Cerberus had pounced on him. The UnderWorld Prince had knocked the M'arrilian from the air and pinned him beneath one giant paw. Gleaming, silver-blue claws had extended from his paws and one of them had pierced one of the M'arrilian's tentacles. Sludge blue blood was leaking out and mingling with the already stained dirt.

"You're a freak of nature." Phelphor snapped, "I can feel your rage and it's not all directed at…me." Those horrid, crafty eyes looked over and found where Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim were standing, "Do you hate them, Ker Berethrou? Or do you hate…_them_?" Phelphor's gaze switched to another Creature but the other heirs couldn't see who.

Whoever it was though, when the M'arrilian pointed them out, Cerberus' heads all growled and his hackles rose, "I'm fighting you! Leave everyone else out of this!"

Phelphor laughed and, despite the position he was in, it sounded horribly victorious, "Aahahahahahahaha! Stupid brat! As soon as you challenged me you put all of Perim on the line! The fate of the entire world is riding on this battle! _Everyone_ is involved in this fight!"

Cerberus' left and right heads roared in fury as the middle head shot down and clamped his teeth around Phelphor. Then he snapped his head back and flung the M'arrilian into the air. Phelphor spun upwards, slammed into the top of the dome, and started tumbling back down.

Cerberus jumped up on his hind legs; jaws snapping as they fought to grab him first. But the snake sunk his fangs in before them. Phelphor stuggled weakly and the snake spat him out so he bounced across the rock. The left head snatched the M'arrilian up and shook him, making gleeful growling noises as he did.

"My gosh…  
Fenrir swayed on his feet, his green skin looking a shade or two paler, "That's…sick…"

"Easy…" Tangath Toborn put his heavy paw-like hands on the OverWorld Prince's shoulders to steady him.

The middle and right heads started barking and growling at the left head, as though they too were disgusted by his behavior. The left head's ears slid back angrily but he dropped Phelphor to the ground anyway.

The M'arrilian had shifted back into his bulky, two-legged form and his flesh was torn and bleeding. One of Cerberus' great paws nudged the motionless form. Phelphor moaned and got shakily into a sitting position.

"Give up." Said the right head.

"You're nearly in pieces." The left head sneered.

"Surrender." The middle head demanded.

"Disappear." All three heads said at the same time.

"Never." Phelphor coughed, blood dribbling past his wide lips, "_Sacro Dilucum_." And he opened his hand.

"But they were all destroyed!" Anubis shouted, "All _Sacro Dilucum_ were destroyed!"

"What's a…a…that thing?" Seraphim asked.

"A dangerous Mugic." Tangath Toborn answered, "Too dangerous. It creates a literal dead zone within a two foot radius around the Creature who activates it, sucking life out of everything in that area. That includes the Creature who cast it."

"NO!" Fenrir screamed, running forward only to be dragged back by Tangath, "NO! DARN IT, CERBERUS! YOU CAN'T COME BACK AND THEN LEAVE! YOU CAN'T! YOU CAN'T!" He sagged in his mentor's arms, "You can't…you can't…"

Even the notes of the _Sacro Dilucum_ Mugic sounded like the toll of Death's bells.

Three pairs of ears pricked forward as the Mugic rotated into the air, glowing with energy of Phelphor's Muge. Then all three heads spoke at the same time and Cerberus' voice was filled with cold fire,

"We agreed no Mugic's Phelphor." Crimson eyes narrowed hatefully, "You're cheating."

And he raised a great paw and smashed it down the Mugic, shattering it into thousands of useless shards.

Phelphor's eyes widened in horror. That unlawful Mugic had been his last, desperate attempt at victory.

"Like I told you before," The three heads all stared down at the cowering M'arrilian like some vengeful god, "I don't want to kill you. But I have to. I was going to let you live and give you and your tribe the chance to slink off and vanish. But I guess mercy is wasted on you." The snake tail hissed, "I'm not sorry, Phelphor."

The air inside the dome started shimmering with heat. Cerberus straightened to his full height, tensed, and roared. Twined amongst the howling notes of the cry were the words of a single, devastating attack,

"_HELLFIRE JUDGEMENT STORM_!"

* * *

_Translations: Abyssus Incendia Ratio Tempestas – Hell Fire Judgment Storm, Sacro Diluculum – Doom Dawn_

_Left you guys with another cliffhanger. Shame on me. X3_

_But you gotta admit, it got pretty wicked awesome, did it not? Cerberus is so cool. I wonder how come he has the _Adsigno Eximo_ and the other heirs don't? Hmmm. Anyone care to take a guess? I like hearing your ideas._

_Thank you all so much for reading and please keep reviewing! I always get all excited when I see I got a review in my email. It's like a party in my mind. Ha ha ha ha! _


	27. Contendo of Gaudium quod Moestitia

_Right, yes, I know M'arrilians can't use Mugic but I did write this before I knew that. And also, this is an AU. For the purposes of the fan fiction, Phelphor was able to use Mugic. Perhaps it came from the energy he absorbed from the Chieftains he killed?

* * *

_

**Contendo of Gaudium quod Moestitia

* * *

**

-Perim, No Man's Land-

Fire.

Flames of black, red, and ivory white.

There had been nothing and then there was fire.

It was as though the very air itself had combusted, consuming everything within the dome.

The blinding light made the Creatures raise their arms to shield their eyes, the roar of the flames blocked all sound, and nothing could be seen except that dancing fire.

Then the shield shuddered and collapsed.

There was a confusion of screaming and pressing bodies as Creatures ran from the fire that had suddenly leapt at them. Anubis threw his arms in front of his face, turned his back on the hazard, and squeezed his eyes shut. Tangath Toborn turned to run, dragging Fenrir with him, when the OverWorld Prince dug his heels into the ground, pointed, and shouted over the noise,

"THE FIRE! TANGATH, LOOK AT THE FIRE!"

It was receding.

And not slowly either. It was as though the flames were being sucked into a vortex, spiraling away from the Creatures and vanishing into a condensed, flickering, humanoid form. Flames Cerberus turned to face the M'arrilians, tail lashing.

"Leave." His voice came from everywhere as though he was still in his three-headed dog form, "Disappear."

"Never!" Shouted one of the other M'arrilians, "You killed Phelphor, so what!? We can still defeat you!" The M'arrilian raised an arm and pointed it at the defending tribes, "ATTACK!"

The M'arrilian army charged again. Cerberus swayed on his feet, coughed, and the fire that made up his body went out with a poof of smoke. Then he fell over, face first, to the rock.

"Cerberus! He'll be trampled!" Fenrir cried, ripping his arm from Tangath Toborn's grasp and running out into the middle of the valley.

"Fenrir!" Maxxor shouted, running after his son.

After a second of hesitation, the rest of the tribes followed with a roar of anger and hatred.

Fenrir knelt beside Cerberus and hauled him up, hooking one of his friends' arms around his shoulders and wrapping his arm around Cerberus' waist.

"I get to kill the Prince of the OverWorld!" Fenrir looked up to see a M'arrilian ready to impale him with his sword.

"DON'T TOUCH MY SON!" Maxxor came out of nowhere and decapitated the M'arrilian with a well aimed swing of his sword, "Fenrir! Get Cerberus out of here and back to the camp!"

"But Father—!"

"Don't worry," Maxxor smiled at his son, "We can handle these lowlifes. Gespedan! Watch his back!"

"As my liege wishes!" The OverWorlder bowed and kept vigil beside Fenrir as the OverWorld Prince started dragging his best friend back through the battlefield to the safety of the war camp. Anubis and Seraphim met up with him, the Danian Princess now leaning on the Mipedian instead of her Mandiblor.

"Cerberus, by golly!" Anubis grinned.

"He's hurt or something!" Fenrir ducked an energy bolt, "We have to get him back to camp!" Someone groaned in his ear and he looked around to see slits of glazed dark brown open up slightly, "Cerberus! You're okay! Can you walk?"

"I…don't know…" Came the strained reply and then he closed his eyes again and said nothing else.

"He probably used up a lot of energy." Seraphim said as they reached the outer edges of the battle, trying to ignore the corpses that were scattered across the rock, "I mean, d-did you _see_ the size of that last attack!?"

"Cool guys don't look at explosions." Anubis joked and Seraphim scowled at him, "What?"

"Uh…" Cerberus seemed to be coming to again, "Fen…" He shut down again before he could say anything else.

"Hang on, buddy, we'll get you somewhere—Gespedan! Look out!" Fenrir shouted and his OverWorld companion flipped through the air and cleaved down a M'arrilian stupid enough to attack the small group, "That was…too close."

"Look! We're almost the camp! Let's move!" Seraphim urged, "Fenrir, get a grip!"

They made it through the chaos of the rest of the battlefield with little incident; save for Gespedan running into an invisible Mipedian. Fenrir hauled Cerberus into the UnderWorld tent and stretched his friend out on the bed.

"Cerberus! Come on, man, wake up!"

"Mmmmmm…" Cerberus sighed and slowly opened his eyes. The others waited breathlessly as he blinked a couple of times and then finally sat up and rubbed a hand over his left horn, "Hey guys…what…happened?"

"CERBERUS!" Fenrir shouted and tackled the UnderWorlder in a hug, laughing loudly.

"Fenrir! My gosh!" Cerberus cried, throwing his arms around his friend as well, "I didn't think I'd ever see you again! You're—oomph!"

Seraphim plowed into them, shouting with joy and disregarding her injured wing, followed shortly by Anubis who knocked them all flat onto the bed. There was a brief struggle as they all tried to get up and when they did, Cerberus remained laying flat on his back, spread eagle with his eyes closed and chest shaking.

"Cerb, uh, you okay?" Anubis' fanned ears twitched slightly with worry.

The UnderWorld Prince, smears of ash still dusting his crimson skin, opened his mouth wide enough to show his gleaming fangs and laughed. The sound was bursting with joy, pain, and sorrow but it was beautiful all the same. It carried over the clamor of the battle going on some distance away. After his fit, Cerberus pushed himself into a sitting position and wiped the tears from his face.

"I wasn't sure I'd ever see you guys again!" Cerberus grinned, "Especially after…" But he trailed off, shaking his horned head.

"We thought we'd lost you forever." Seraphim flicked her good wing a couple of times and gave Cerberus another hug, "So why didn't you tell us what you were planning to do!?" And she slapped him.

"What?" Anubis and Fenrir said at the same time.

"Wow, you figured it all out, didn't you?" Cerberus rubbed the spot on his cheek with a wary smile, "But if I'd told you, would you have let me do it?"

"No!"

"See."

"Would someone explain what is going on here?" Fenrir cut in, annoyed at being out of the loop.

"The only way for the Cothica to be free of Phelphor was if it escaped its host's body," Seraphim explained, turning her back on Cerberus who was now yawning loudly as though the whole thing was rather dull to him, "But it told us itself that it couldn't kill its host or commit suicide. But there weren't any rules about someone else killing the host body."

"Ahhhhhh, I see!" Anubis interjected, perking up.

"Good, 'cause I don't. Explain." Fenrir grumbled.

"It's easy!" Anubis continued for Seraphim, "The Cothica's plan all along was for Cerberus to get killed by a M'arrilian so that it could escape from Phelhpor! And Cerb, you coming back to life must have tapped into some sort of power source that let you do those awesome moves!"

"If I'd told you guys the entire plan," Cerberus said with a crafty smile, "Then you would never have left and all of this," He spread his arms as if by doing so he could encompass the vastness of what had just transpired, "None of this would have happened."

"What about that…that…_Adsigno Eximo_ thing you used?" Fenrir questioned, running a hand through his black hair. The white streak down the side of his face got tangled in his fingers and he tugged it out with a frown.

Cerberus hung his head and looked away, "I don't want to talk about it." He rubbed a fingertip up and down his nose like he used to do when he masqueraded as Kaz and played with his glasses, "I'm exhausted and need some decent sleep. Do you have any idea how much energy using the Seal Releases ta—?"

"Cerberus!" Everyone looked around at the entrance to the tent. Queen Takinom and Chaor were standing there. It was Takinom who had cried out, "Cerberus, they said you were dead!" She pushed past the other heirs and made to pull her son into a hug.

Cerberus stepped back out of her reach, his face contorted by an inner agony.

"Cerberus, come here, son." Chaor urged, holding out his great, clawed hand. He looked distraught.

Cerberus shook his head slowly. The other three heirs looked between him and his parents with worried expressions.

"Cerberus?" Takinom moved forward again and the UnderWorld Prince stepped back once more, "What's wrong? Cerbie?"

His pet name.

Cerberus shook his head again. Then he stumbled away, tearing past his parents and running as fast as he could. His friends glanced at one another and then took off after him. The UnderWorld Queen made to follow but Chaor grabbed her arm.

"Chaor!"

"Takinom," Chaor was looking after where his son and his son's companions had vanished out the door, "I think…he _knows_."

On the other side of the war camp, opposite the slowly emptying battlefield where cries of victory could be heard from the defending tribes, tucked behind a small hill, Cerberus sat down heavily on a rock. His limbs were quivering with exhaustion, he was breathing hard, and molten tears were threatening at the edges of his chocolate eyes. The other three caught up with him and Seraphim crouched down in front of him. She cocked her head to try and look at his face. Cerberus turned away.

"You okay?" The Danina asked softly.

"Perfectly fine." Came the muttered, unconvincing reply.

"BS." Fenrir said bluntly, crossing his arms.

"Dude, what's wrong?" Anubis put a hand on Cerberus' shoulder but the UnderWorlder pulled away and turned his back on his friends.

"I don't want to talk about it." Cerberus muttered, "Not right now, I—."

"Prince Cerberus!" Shouted a voice and the UnderWorlder's head snapped up to look over the hilltop. A short Creature came running over the crest of the hill, tripped, and fell head over heels the rest of the way, skidding on his stomach to stop in front of the four heirs.

"H'earring!" Cerberus knelt down in front of the fallen Creature and picked him up, "Are you alright!?"

"My lord!" The small, long-eared Creature brushed himself off and smiled at the UnderWorld Prince, "You are alive! You are! I'm so…I'm so happy!"

"H'earring I…" Cerberus' smile seemed to freeze and slowly melt from his face. He hung his head, black hair dangling in his face, "How long have you know?"

"Known, mi' lord?" H'earring questioned, raising one ear slightly. Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim watched the whole scene curiously, "Known what?"

"That I…that I wasn't…" The words seemed to be stuck in Cerberus' throat, "How long have you known that I'm not real?"

H'earring stared up at the UnderWorlder Prince, wonder, pain, worry, hurt, and a slight hint of anger playing across his features and flashing through his large blue eyes. Cerberus stared right back, face blank but his chocolate eyes split with slants of muddy red.

"N-not…real, mi' lord?" The tiny UnderWorlder finally murmured, "What do you mean?"

Fenrir, Anubis, and Seraphim watched this exchange in wonder-filled silence.

"How long have you known I was tool!?" Cerberu's voice crept higher as his temper flared, "How long have you known I was nothing but a weapon!? How long have you known I was made to be the Catalyst!?" He raised his head and his eyes were blazing red with anger and hurt, "How long have you known I was a…a fake! A biologically engineered Creature _grown in Ulmar's lab_!?"

H'earring's mouth moved soundlessly in shock. Seraphim gasped, Anubis' eyes bugged out, and Fenrir made a strangled noise of shock. This drew the attention of Cerberus. Apparently realizing what he'd just said in front of his friends, he tore away from them, running as fast as he could away from the camp. H'earring gave chase, leaving the other three heirs behind. He caught up to the UnderWorld Prince before Cerberus had gone too far and managed to get him to stop.

Anubis couldn't help but perk his fanned ears to try and listen in to the conversation. Seraphim frowned at him but said nothing. She was just as curious as the rest of them. Fenrir kept silent, staring at the rock where his friend had been sitting as though still trying to wrap his mind around what had been said.

"They're too far away." Anubis said after a moment or two, "And they're whispering, I can barely pick out anything they're saying." He swung his tail back and forth across the rocky ground, thinking. Then he said, "We should go back to camp. Our parents are waiting."

"Yeah." Seraphim said, "You going to be okay, Fenrir?"

"Mm-hm." The OverWorlder said distractedly, blinking himself out of his daze. He glanced around at Cerberus and H'earring and then turned to follow the other two, "Come on, guys, I'm hungry."

"Now you're talking, my bro!" Anubis chuckled.

Across the rocky, Cerberus was crouched down beside H'earring, looking lost and angry and forlorn all at the same time.

"You don't know the whole story!" H'earring whispered desperately, hands tightened into fists and ears nearly standing on end with his distress, "If you'd just _talk_ to your parents—!"

"I don't want to talk to them!" Cerberus snarled back in a hushed voice, "The Cothica told me everything!"

"Well it obviously didn't if you're thinking like you are!" H'earring snapped back, "I apologize for my tone of voice, m' lord, but if I know you like I think I do then you probably didn't even _let_ the Cothica finish talking before you got angry and told it stop!"

Cerberus didn't say anything but his face was a mask of a flustered expression. H'earring had hit the nail on the head, as the human phrase went. The two UnderWorlders stared one another down for a moment or two and then Cerberus tore his gaze away and stood up.

"I don't want to talk about it right now, H'earring. I want to sleep."

"Alright." H'earring straightened and brushed imaginary dust off his vest, "Then allow me to show you to your tent, mi' lord."

"Sure, H'earring. And can I get something to eat, too?"

Of course, mi' lord."

As the two UnderWorlders headed back towards the noisy camp, flooded with shouts and songs of victory and joy, Cerberus' tail curled up into an S shape and the tip started swinging back and forth. The hair on his back bristled slightly and he looked down at H'earring.

"Say H'earring…"

"Yes mi' lord?"

"How much did Mom cry?"

"A.h…I cannot…answer that in the way you wish." The little Creature paused for a moment and then continued, "Let me simply say that had war been not on the horizon, her tears would have been more."

"Oh…" Was the only response.

Then they were lost amongst the happy chaos of the tents and the Creatures celebrating their victory over the M'arrilians.

-Somewhere, Two Hours Earlier-

"_**Why are you laughing?"**_

"_**I…I don't really know. Probably because I know everything's going to change the second you send me back there. There is no Cerberus; there never was. There was only the Catalyst…"**_

"_**I have been trying to tell you otherwise."**_

"_**And I told you I didn't want you to bring it up anymore."**_

"_**I don't. You do."**_

"_**It's not fair. Why did it have to be me? Why does it always have to be me!?"**_

"_**There are far worse situations you could find yourself in."**_

"_**It's hard to believe that, even though I know you're right."**_

"_**Are you ready to return?"**_

"_**Yeah. But I just have one question for you?"**_

"_**And that is?"**_

"_**What's going to happen to you? I mean, where are you going to go."**_

"_**I am going to go back to Perim as well. In form of the wind, the rocks, the plants, the sunlight, the stars. I am going to return to Perim in the way I was meant to live in it; the very soul of the world."**_

"_**Right…"**_

"_**I must admit, having a body of my own was, for a time, entertaining. But I prefer the freedom that comes with riding on the moonlight."**_

"_**You and your stupid poetic way of speaking. Enough with the witty banter and whatnot, just send me back already."**_

"_**You are ready then?"**_

"_**Would it be cliché of me to say I was born ready?"**_

"_**I suppose it would be, a little bit."**_

"_**Heh, heh…then let's squash those M'arrilian scumbags!"**_

"_**Luck, Cerberus, Son of Chaor, Heir to the Throne of the UnderWorld, and may peace follow you after the war. Your heart is a strong one but you will need more than that to survive the aftermath…**_

…_**Never forget that you have friends who care deeply for you. They are the lamp in the dark world the M'arrilians have created for you. Have hope."**_

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_Translations: Contendo of Gaudium quod Moestitia – The Contrast of Happiness and Sorrow_

_Stupid Cothica and its dramatic speeches. Why do those all powerful masses of energy have to be all "oooh, I'm so smart and powerful and wonderful so I can rant in dramatic ways for hours on end"? Tch, they would. _

_All the same…_

_I am not going to apologize for the lateness of this chapter. That might seem a little rude but I do have a life outside my fan fictions. (gasp in shock) I know, I know, it's hard to believe but it's true. Fear not, life will go one. _

_In any case, I hope this chapter held enough of a shocker for you. And I hope it can keep you guessing until I manage to post the next one. Whenever that is. _

_Anyone care to take a guess on the whole story of what exactly has Cerberus all tied in knots?_


	28. Gaudium Illorum Quisnam Puto

_Wow. This took forever. I got Writer's Block like there was no tomorrow. Also, I was really, really busy with school and stuff. Thanks for understanding.

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_

**Gaudium Illorum Quisnam Puto

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**

-Perim, The OverWorld, the Ruins of Kiru City-

There wasn't much left of the once great Kiru City.

The entire outer wall was gone, a pile of rubble that ringed the city, the arsenal was decimated, most of the buildings were gone, and the palace was only half standing; its top floors completely gone, leaving only the first few bottom floors and the cellars.

But there was enough buildings left standing to accommodate the homeless UnderWorlders and the Mandiblors that remained with their Princess instead of returning to the Oasis with the Mipedians to retrieve their Queen. Not to mention the OverWorlders themselves.

Cerberus, Fenrir, and Seraphim were staying in the remains of the castle. Anubis had gone back to the Mipedian Oasis with the rest of his tribe. The good-bye had been a slightly unstable thing. Cerberus had not been shown up at the Kiru City entrance. If you could call a gap of removed rubble an entrance. Anubis held up the caravan for as long as he could but the Mipedians did need to cross the OverWorld and reach the desert before nightfall.

"Where _is_ he!?" Seraphim was looking up at the palace, wings quivering in her anxiety, "He said he was going to be down in a little bit…!"

Fenrir glared up at the remains of the castle and then turned away to face Anubis again. Anubis' fanned ears flicked back and forth a little bit to match the worried expression on his face,

"Is Cerb coming?"

"I don't….know." Fenrir admitted, "But if he doesn't, I mean, he's probably got a good reason." The OverWorlder glanced at Seraphim, "Right?"

"Something's bothering him…." The Danian Princess replied softly.

"Prince Anubis!" Called one of the Mipedians from the caravan, "We must leave!"

"Just a little longer!" The Mipedian Prince called back slightly desperately.

"Anubis!" Mudeenu shouted at the head of the traveling group, "Now!"

Anubis made a handful of flustered noises, snapped his tail through the air, and scuffed his feet through the dirt. In the end, though, he could not wait any longer. He hugged Seraphim tightly, did the same to Fenrir, and took one last, longing look at Kiru City.

"Tell Cerberus that I said bye."

And they were gone.

Later, Fenrir stood in front of Cerberus' bedroom door, glaring at the thick wood as though he could burn through it with his heated gaze. After a moment or two, he raised a fist and slammed it against the door.

"Ceberus! Open the door! I wanna talk to you!"

"I don't feel good…" Came the muffled reply, "I just wanna sleep…"

"You know that Anubis left, don't you?"

There was silence on the other side of the door for a moment or two and then Cerberus' voice answered,

"Go away."  
"Cerberus—!"

"I don't feel well, leave me alone!"

Fenrir growled and ground his teeth together. He grabbed the doorknob and tried to turn it but it was locked. He gave a frustrated yell and raised a fist to punch the door down when someone grabbed his wrist in a vice-like grip. Fenrir glanced up and found himself face to face with Cerberus' father.

"I'd leave my son a lone for the moment." There was something heavy in Chaor's tone that made Fenrir's anger at his friend seep away, "He hasn't been himself since he used the _Adsigno Eximo_. It drained too much of his energy; he's not feeling well." Chaor released Fenrir's arm and stalked off down the hall. Fenrir watched him go and looked back at Cerberus' door.

Had using those powerful attacks really worn Cerberus out that much?

Then what had that whole conversation with H'earring after the fight been about?

Fenrir looked at the door one last time and then stepped away. He paused once, looked back over his shoulder, and then vanished around a corner.

After a few seconds had passed, the door creaked open and a flash of dark chocolate brown peered down the hallway. Then Cerberus withdrew and shut the door again. He walked slowly across the stone floor and sat down on the edge of his bed, facing the window that looked out across the desolate waste that had once been the lush forests of the OverWorld.

His father had stopped Fenrir from entering. His father had intervened because he knew that…because he knew the truth about what he—Cerberus—really was.

The UnderWorlder stared out the window without really seeing what lay beyond, his mind wandering back to the moments after his death and the time before he entered the fight with Phelphor…

-Somewhere, A day and a half earlier…-

_**Death hadn't been so bad. **_

_**At least where he had ended up had been pleasant enough. It was almost like the interior of a rather modest UnderWorld home. But there were no doors or windows and it seemed to only contain the one room though Cerberus had gotten the feeling that the house was much larger.**_

_**He had awakened on an oval shaped carpet on a floor of warm stone. When he'd opened his eyes, he'd squinted against the flickering glare of the fire spitting in the stone fireplace just in front of him.**_

_**The Cothica had been waiting for him, sitting on a large pillow on the floor, in the form it seemed to like to appear in; the albino woman in the white dress.**_

"_**Did it work?" He'd asked anxiously, putting his back to the flames and sitting cross-legged on the rug to face it. **_

"_**Yes." The Cothica had answered, "They are safe with the allied tribes deep in the Mipedian Desert."**_

_**Cerberus had sighed in relief, "Good, then at least I've got that off my conscious." He'd then rubbed a hand along one horn and asked, "So…where do I go?"**_

"_**Pardon?" **_

"_**Heaven? Hell? Limbo? Where do you put me?"**_

_**The Cothica had laughed lightly at him and shook its head, brushing its white hair from its face, **_

"_**You will be given life again, Cerberus, son of Chaor." **_

"_**Life…?" It had seemed unreal, a dream, something that could not possibly be true, "But…my body…Phelphor has it…"**_

"_**No, he does not." The Cothica had answered, "I have hidden it from him, deep within the earth, so he could not use it to try and revive you with black arts."**_

"_**That only sounded a little bit creepy."**_

_**The Cothica had not laughed at that comment. It had looked at its fine, feminine hands and said in a low voice, **_

"_**Do you recall how Phelphor told you it was your purpose to become the vessel of the Cothica?"**_

"_**I try not to…" Cerberus had admitted hotly, "What kind of arrogant dastard would say something like that!? It's not like he could tell the future!"**_

"_**He could not." The Cothica had agreed, "But he did not need to. It was, indeed, your fate to host me in your body." Cerberus stared at it open mouthed in shock, "But quite by accident. Lord Chaor and Lady Takinom, you are their son, I can assure you of that. But you were not of the womb."**_

"_**What's…that supposed to mean?" Cerberus had not been sure he'd wanted to know.**_

"_**You were grown in Ulmar's lab; a product of gene splicing, Mugic tampering, and—."**_

"_**STOP IT!" His cry had echoed around the stone room, ringing in his pointed ears, "I don't care if it is true! I don't want to hear it anymore!"**_

_**Silence had reigned for a few moments and then the Cothica had said in a soft voice, **_

"_**I am sorry you had to hear this now. But I swear that what I tell you is naught but truth."**_

"_**It's not that I don't believe you, you can't lie anyway." Cerberus had grumbled, "I just…didn't want to believe it. I don't."**_

"_**And why do you believe me so readily when so many others have lied to you?"**_

"_**Because…I dunno…." Cerberus turned his gaze to the floor, "Because I know you can't lie, I guess."**_

"_**Do you want to hear the rest?" The Cothica asked.**_

"_**No." Cerberus had answered thickly, "I don't want to talk about how I'm a fake, how I'm a…how I'm not really me…"**_

"_**As the Prince of the UnderWorld desires." The Cothica inclined its head once and they did not speak of it again.**_

-Perim, the OverWorld, the Ruins of Kiru City, Cerbrus' Temporary Room-

Cerberus shook himself back into the present time, the hair on his back bristling with his discontent.

He was a genetically mutated freak whose only purpose was to become a walking weapon.

And his parents had known it.

"Why…" He whispered clenching his hands on the sheets of his bed, "Why would they keep something like that from me!?" His chest felt tight and it was like someone had lodged a stone in his throat, "They're my parents! Why would they do that!? Don't they love me!?" He yanked his arms up to pull the sheets around his shoulders. His claws tore strands in the fabric with loud ripping noises and he buried his faces in the clean sheets.

The Cothica had told him that his parents did love him but Cerberus had a hard time believing that. Especially since they hadn't told him that he was a biologically grown…_thing_ created by that twisted freak Ulmar. Wouldn't real parents have told their only son and heir to the throne that he wasn't a real Creature? Wouldn't real parents have _stopped_ something like that from happening?

"This is…is so stupid…!" Cerberus groaned, "I don't want to talk to them!" He lowered the sheets from his face, looking at the rips in the cloth, "But I have to ask them _why_…"

He stood and the end of his tail curled inward in agitation. His gaze settled outside the window once more, this time actually seeing the desolate waste beyond it. His mind was spinning around and around with questions and fears and angers.

If he had responded to the voices in his mind—to the Cothica's call and Phelphor's harsh criticisms—would Perim still have been as bad as it was?

If he and the others had come back to Perim sooner, would Aras still be alive?

Someone knocking on his door made him jump and look around. He saw the door handle rattle and wondered if Fenrir was trying to talk to him again. He didn't want to tell his friends the truth. Not yet. Not when he hadn't even confronted his parents about it yet.

"My lord Cerberus?" It wasn't Fenrir, it was H'earring, "I've brought you some food…"

"I'm not hungry." The UnderWorld Prince answered, still looking at the door, "Go away."

"As my lord wishes."

"H'earring wait!"

A bit of silence and then a hesitant, "Yes…?"

"Where are…my parents?"

"Last I checked, they were in their room on the floor below."

"Thank you, H'earring." Cerberus paused and then asked, "May I have that food now?"

-Perim, the OverWorld, the Ruins of Kiru City, Chaor and Takinom's Temporary Room-

"Chaor, enough! Come sit down and eat something." Takinom insisted, watching the UnderWorld ruler pace back and forth relentlessly across the rug in the middle of their room, "Chaor!"

"But how does he know?" Chaor growled to himself, stalking towards the window only to wheel around and head for the door. His tail lashed the air as he went, "How did he find out? Who told him?" The UnderWorld paused, halfway through the motion of turning to the window, "Does he hate us for it?"

"Chaor!" Takinom said loudly and Chaor looked around at her, "Stop. When Cerberus wishes to tell us his feelings on the matter, he will come to us. But until then you—."

A knock on the door, tentative and light, cut her off. Chaor sighed and grabbed the handle, opening the door to the person waiting on the other side.

"Cerberus?" Takinom stood from her chair, heading for her son, but Chaor threw out a hand, stopping her from proceeding.

"I…" Cerberus took a deep breath and looked his father square in the eye, "Tell me the truth, Dad. Tell me why you let Ulmar turn me into a walking weapon."

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_Translations: Gaudium Illroum Quisnam Puto – The Happiness of Those Who Believe, Adsigno Eximo – Seal Release_

_Suck._

_Suck, suck, suck, and more suck._

_I wanted to get this chapter done and so I forced myself to write it and I don't like the way it turned out. Ach, when do I ever write a chapter that I like? Once in a Blue Harvest Moon, that's when. Hmph. _

_Well, actually, I did like the flashback with the Cothica telling Cerberus what he is. Cothica equals jerk. Whatever._

_(yawns) Alright, I'm off to bed. I'll dream about how to write the next chapter of this or something like that. Uhg, I would have liked to get this finished sooner but I just got bogged down by all the crap I had to do. And I'm going to have a lot more crap to do to. Don't expect me to update as frequently as I did in high school. I think that much is obvious as is. _

_Anyway, thank you guys for being so patient with me! And for all the lovely reviews you've been leaving me! I LOVE your guys' feedback and ideas! It's so much fun to read what you guys think, it really is! Thanks for reading and please keep reviewing! Reviews make the lights work in your home! (don't question it, they just DO)_


	29. Testimonium Ut Vos Es Verus

_Kaz does his most athletic moves ever in Raznus Returns. Seriously. He did a freaking_ forward flip _and_ shot underneath the Danians_! Where the heck did he learn to do that!? Since when was Kaz athletic!? Ugh, I'm not going to question it…he was pumped with adrenaline. Yeah, that was it. An adrenaline rush, that was all. _

…………_._

_UnderWorlders rule.

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**Testimonium Ut Vos Es Verus

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**

-Perim, the OverWorld, Ruins of Kiru City, Chaor and Takinom's Temporary Room-

Chaor and Takinom stared at their son in shock. Cerberus looked blankly back at them. Then Chaor put a heavy hand on the Prince's shoulder and pulled him into the room, shutting and locking the door behind him. Cerberus shrugged his shoulder and ducked out from underneath his father's touch, moving to the far end of the room to sit on a small couch.

"Who told you the truth?" Chaor asked thickly, still standing by the door. Takinom had remained by the table which was still laden with a half touched meal.

"The Cothica." Cerberus responded, "It told me I was grown in Ulmar's lab, that I was a result of…of gene splicing and Mugics or something." He looked at his parents with desperate chocolate eyes, "Why did you let him _do_ that to me!? I'm your _son_ aren't I!? Why would you let him _do _that to me!?" Cerberus claws dug holes into the fabric of the couch.

Takinom's wings quivered as she pulled them tightly against her back, agitated, worried, and desperate to be with her son all at the same time.

"We did not intend for Ulmar to make you a weapon, Cerberus." Chaor said in a low voice, "In fact, we had no idea of what had happened until it was too late."

"Bull." Cerberus spat, the spines on his arms rising slightly.

"It is the truth!" Takinom cut in, "Ulmar was mind controlled by the M'arrillians!"

"That long ago!?" Cerberus cried in disbelief.

"Yes!" Chaor's shout was thunderous but splintered with pain, "The M'arrillians had planned for you to be the vessel of the Cothica for a long time…! They…they…" Chaor ran a massive hand down his face, "They poisoned Takinom."

Cerberus looked around at his mother and she looked back at him with a hard expression. She wrapped her hands around Chaor's arm.

"I'm not sure how long they had planned this," Chaor murmured, putting an arm around his Queen and drawing her close, "But they poisoned Takinom so she could not have children. Back then, we thought it was simply a…condition. We went to Ulmar. He told us he could…make us an heir."

"We thought nothing of it at the time." Takinom said softly, "We simply wanted a child. We had no idea that Ulmar was being mind controlled. We had no idea what he done to you until after you were three years old!"

Cerberus' breath caught in his throat and his hands quivered, tearing up the fabric of the couch even more.

The M'arrillians.

That whole time, it had been the M'arrillians.

The source of all the problems he and his friends had gone through, the reason behind every discomfort they had suffered, and the instigators of the whole mess had been those stupid, dastardly, fish-faced, scum-sucking, muck-kissing, water-worshipping, M'arrillians.

An explosion of emotions went off inside Cerberus like an erupting volcano; anger, pain, sorrow, and relief all mingled together in a torrent of feelings. The UnderWorld Prince jumped off the couch and threw himself into his parents' arms, chest heaving with dry sobs.

"Why're we always fighting!?" He moaned, burying his face into Chaor's massive chest, "Fighting! Always fighting! We had to leave home because there was fighting! And even then we could not escape it! There was war in the Human Realm, humans were always fighting! And when we came back there was still fighting!" Cerberus shuddered in the arms of his mother and father, "Why are we always fighting!? It never stops! It never…it never…never stops…!"

"It will stop." Chaor said, clasping his arms around his son, "The tribes are allied, Cerberus, we will no longer fight. This I swear to you as Lord of the UnderWorld."

"And our home?" Cerberus looked up Takinom.

"It can be rebuilt." The UnderWorld Queen answered.

"And…me?"

"No matter what you have done or where you have been," Takinom ran her fingers through the hair on Cerberus' back.

"You will forever be our son and the heir to the throne of the UnderWorld." Chaor finished, affectionately tracing a claw over one of Cerberus' horns. Cerberus squirmed under their touches and snickered.

"What about your companions?" Takinom asked suddenly and Cerberus withdrew, crossing his arms across his chest and gripping his upper arms tightly.

"I'll tell them everything. They deserve that, at least. To make up for letting them think I was dead." Cerberus sighed and closed his eyes, "I haven't forgiven you yet. And I won't forgive Ulmar, even if it was the fault of the M'arrillians. I'm trying to sort this out. I need to be alone."

Without another word, he turned and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

"He is angry with us for withholding the truth." Takinom said.

"I can hardly blame him." Chaor responded, "He grew up thinking he knew who he was. Then, suddenly, his identity is shattered by the simple revelation that he was a product of experimentation. He's trying to find out who he is, Takinom. And that is a difficult thing to do. He needs time alone."

-Perim, the OverWorld, Outside the Ruins of Kiru City-

"What're you doing out here?" Fenrir jumped and looked around. Zhade was hanging upside down on the side of a still standing part of the wall. His tail flopped down over his spiky back as he dug his claws deeper into the stone.

"What's it matter to you?" Fenrir spat back. He'd taken a dislike to the Mipedian; Zhade seemed to have a habit of being everywhere he was unwanted.

"Maybe I'm just curious." Zhade crept down the side of the wall and stood upright on the ground, "Maybe I want to be friends. Maybe I was told to keep an eye on you. Maybe I'm just doing what I do best."

"Stalking." Fenrir huffed and turned his back on the lizard-like Creature and continued practicing with his Sword of Khy'at, going through the fighting stances that Tangath Toborn had taught him years ago.

"You're holding that quite awkwardly." Zhade flashed into the visible spectrum right in front of him and Fenrir was forced to yank himself out of a swing that would have lopped off the Mipedian's head. As a result, the Battle Gear flew back over his shoulder and sent him stumbling backwards.

"I'm not practicing seriously!" Fenrir snapped back, straightening and letting the weapon dangle at his side, "Besides, I got completely right-handed in the Human Realm! I need to learn to use my left hand again!"

Zhade blinked at him slowly but said nothing. Fenrir glared at him for a while and then deflated.

"Everything's different." He muttered, looking down at the dusty earth beneath his feet, "I came homeand expected everything to be the same. But it's not. Everything's…dead."

"Not everything is dead." Zhade answered in his slithering, husky voice, "Even the death of something can grant new life." He scraped his clawed feet across the ground, sweeping aside some dust and rock, and showed the Fenrir the pathetic, dry, moss that grew in the cracks of the stone.

Fenrir said nothing to this revelation. He turned his impossibly blue eyes back on Zhade,

"Why're you here, anyway? Didn't you go back to the Oasis with Anubis and the rest of the Mipedians?"

"I'm a Stalker, OverWorlder." Zhade became invisible and Fenrir tensed. He felt a hand on his shoulder and jerked away, swatting with his hand to make the Mipedian respect his space. Zhade returned to visibility a few feet away, "I was actually sent here by Prince Anubis to see how everyone is doing."

"Oh." Fenrir suddenly felt stupid and childish, "How's he doing?"

"He is fine." Zhade said, "He still grieves for Siado and wishes he could have remained here to help with the rebuilding of Kiru and the other cities but he is doing fine."

"Thanks." The OverWorld Prince muttered, "Have you seen Seraphim or Cerberus at all?"

"I have already spoken with Lady Seraphim." Zhade crouched down and dragged his claws through the dirt, not looking at Fenrir, "She and her Danian entourage are preparing to leave for Mount Pillar and their Underground soon. She wishes to speak with you and the UnderWorlder before she departs."

"And Cerberus?"

"The UnderWorld Prince is being very withdrawn. He did not allow me to speak with him, even when I told him that I was here on my lord Anubis' behalf." Zhade stood up finally and arched his back, tail standing straight out as he stretched. Then he relaxed and grinned at Fenrir, "I was going to spy on him to discover what was his problem but that would not have been to my Prince's liking. I think he would rather tell his companions on his own time." And he vanished in the usual manner of Mipedian invisibility; a slight bending of the air and he was gone.

Fenrir glared at the spot where the Mipedian had been and growled. Who was Zhade to tell him what to do? Cerberus had already made it clear that he wanted no company from Fenrir and Chaor had only added to that by telling him off. Fenrir didn't want to leave his friend alone but, at the moment, it seemed Cerberus was dead set on being a loner.

Fenrir turned around, putting his back to the city, and started swinging his sword around again. But his heart wasn't as into it as it had been. His heart wasn't in much these days. Seeing the ruin of his home had done him no good. He stabbed the sword into the earth and sat down on a piece of rubble.

"Fenrir." The OverWorld Prince glanced over his shoulder and did a double take.

"Cerberus?" Fenrir almost smiled but then remembered how his friend had turned him away and said, "I thought you weren't feeling well."

"I changed my mind." The UnderWorlder replied, "I'm alright now." He sat down on another hunk of rock beside Fenrir, "Considering that I just found out that the M'arrillians have been ruining my life since before I was born—poisoning my mother, mind controlling Ulmar, making me a weapon of mass destruction—yeah, I think I'm okay." Cerberus turned his brown eyes to Fenrir, "How about you?"

Fenrir only laughed, "The thing about you, Cerberus," He said between his chuckles, "Is that I've never heard you lie!"

"I cannot tell a lie." Cerberus said, pulling a face and putting a hand over his chest, "I am guilty of being emo."

Fenrir snorted and nudged Cerberus' shoulder with his fist, "You, emo? Please. That's like Anubis going on a diet."

"Well, as long as we're back on friendly terms for the moment." Cerberus seemed to sober slightly and he looked out across the wasteland, "I need to go to the Human Realm."

"You what?" Fenrir wasn't sure he'd heard right, "You're kidding, right?"

"No." Cerberus didn't look at his friend, "Everyone here is too busy rebuilding Perim so I think they've forgotten that the Gate and Chaotic are left unguarded at the moment. What if a human stumbles through? What if there are still some M'arrillians out there and they get through to the Human Realm?" He finally returned his gaze to Fenrir, chocolate eyes pleading, "We need a new Gatekeeper. With Elliot gone, our world is wide open to the humans."

Fenrir stared at Cerberus for a long while and then said, "That's got to be one of the most cryptic and intelligent things I've ever heard you say." Cerberus scowled at him, "But I'll go with you, if that's what you're asking."

Cerberus grinned, "Excellent. H'earring's taking us to the Gate and I can use the Seal Release to get through Chaotic to the Human Realm. Let's go!" He stood up, tail swinging back and forth as though he was wagging it like a happy puppy.

"What? Right now?" Fenrir asked, standing up as well, "But Seraphim's leaving soon!"

"She is?" Cerberus paused, "Let's go see her!" And he dashed back towards the city ruins.

"Cerberus, wait up! Cerberus!" Fenrir ran after the UnderWorlder, "Cerberus, come on, I'm not as fast as you! Cerberus!" Fenrir put on a burst of speed and caught up with his friend, "Race you!"

"You beat me!? Ha!"

"You!? You're as athletic as a tree!"

Cerberus gave a barking laugh and leapt ahead. Fenrir moved to catch up with him. The two of them raced each other all the way to the palace remains. They headed up the stairs, all the way to the upper levels, and would have run into Seraphim had the Danian Princess been a step further out her door,

"Hey!"

"Seraphim!" Cerberus stuck his head over Fenrir's shoulder, "Are you really leaving?"

"Soon, yes." She looked between both of them and her eyes narrowed, "What're you two up to?"

"Nothing." Fenrir said quickly, pushing Cerberus' head back (the UnderWorlder protested loudly to this), "We just came to say good-bye."

"Nice of Cerberus to show his face." Seraphim said coldly. Cerberus shuffled his feet and shrank back against the wall, looking at the stone floor. Fenrir glared at Seraphim but she only returned his glare with one of her own.

"You guys have every right in the world to be mad at me. I ditched you without explaining anything." Cerberus muttered. The spikes on his tail grazed the wall and sent a high screeching noise into the air, "But I had to think about some stuff and get some answers and a bunch of crap that's not important now!" He looked up at his two friends, "Would an "I'm sorry" make things at least a little bit better?"

"A little bit." Seraphim said but she smiled, "Look, whatever you guys are planning, just be careful."

"We usually aren't?" Fenrir asked innocently.

"No, you aren't." Seraphim answered, "The next time we all get the chance to hang out together, Cerberus, you'd better spill your guts, you got that!"

"Yes ma'am!" Cerberus snapped a mocking salute, grinning. Seraphim rolled her eyes at the both of them and, with a slight wave of her hand, stepped back into her room and shut the door.

"Now what?" Cerberus asked, looking at Fenrir.

"To the lower levels!" The OverWorld Prince shouted, "Race you again!"

"Ha!"

The two of them took off running down the halls again, racing down flight of stairs after flight of stairs, shouting and laughing as they went. As they barreled down the stretch of hall to the stairs that would lead them to the basement levels of the castle, Fenrir pushed Cerberus' shoulder and the UnderWorlder slammed into the wall. Fenrir pulled ahead.

Cerberus growled playfully and jumped forward, hands outstretched. He caught Fenrir in the upper back just as the OverWorlder was turning to head down the stairs. Fenrir shouted in surprise and tumbled down the stairs. Cerberus, who had thrown his whole weight forward expecting to meet resistance from Fenrir, suddenly found himself flailing wildly, trying to follow his friend in the same manner.

He did not succeed.

Cerberus gave a wild, barking cry of alarm and flipped backwards down the stairs, heels over head, all the way to the bottom. There, he slammed right into Fenrir who was just starting to stand up again and the two boys ended up in a tangled heap, laughing breathlessly at one another.

"Having fun, boys?" Asked a deep voice and the two Prince's looked around with a start.

* * *

_Translations: Testimonium Ut Vos Es Verus – Proof That You Are Real_

_Whoa, this chapter _was not_ supposed to take as long as it did. My bad. Life got in the way. Sorry._

_As for the ending, um, what's to say? I gave you guys a cliffie. Guess! Guess who it is! No one will guess correctly and I will grin evilly because I'm a jerk like that! XD_

_I don't really have much to say for myself at this point. NTBL is coming to a close but we've still got a couple of chapter to go. Thank you, everyone, who has stuck around to wait a ridiculously long amount of time for this update, I really appreciate it._

_Thanks for reading and please review! I heart reviews and so does H'earring! I…don't know how he just does. _


	30. Cruor Ut Patefacio Ianua

_I AM SORRY THIS CHAPTER IS SO LATE.

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_

**Cruor Ut Patefacio Ianua

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**

-Perim, the OverWorld, the Ruins of Kiru City, the Basement Levels of the OverWorld Palace-

"Having fun boys?"

Cerberus and Fenrir looked up and saw Najarin towering over them. The OverWorld Muge looked worn out and the thundercloud of power that seemed to follow him wherever he went seemed to have diminished somewhat. His left arm was wrapped in bandages and there was a slight limp in his right leg but Najarin still commanded an air of respect and an undeniable authority that made him such a loyal companion to Maxxor and the OverWorld as a whole.

"H-hello…Najarin." Fenrir smiled weakly as he disentangled himself from Cerberus, "Uh, we were just—."

"Heading into the human world, I know." Najarin said, "But did you really think anyone would let you through unsupervised after you'd already fallen prey to whims of the Human Realm once before?"

Fenrir looked first at the floor and then at Cerberus. But Cerberus was looking past Najarin at the Creature standing next to the stone wall etched with runes. H'earring smiled sheepishly and waved.

"H'earring asked you to keep an eye on us." It was not a question. Cerberus returned his gaze to the OverWorld Muge, "But why did you agree? What am I to you?"

"You are a fellow Prince of Perim, is that not reason enough?" Najarin answered smoothly and Cerberus bristled.

"You knew, didn't you!?" The UnderWorld Prince snapped, "You've known since the beginning what I am!"

"Perhaps I have." Najarin responded, looking Cerberus in the eye. The Prince's irises had become filmed in a dim crimson, "But that is of no importance now, is it? What was done, is done. It has passed. You have done Perim a great service and that is something that will never be forgotten." Cerberus flushed and ducked his head, feeling ashamed for having lashed out at the OverWorld Muge, "Ah, but we have been standing here too long. Come, there is work to be done." Najarin turned to H'earring, "Open the Gate."

H'earring nodded eagerly and traced his tiny fingers around in a circle. Where his fingers touched the stone and passed by, glowing runes of red remained. When he had completed a full circle and the runes connected together, a circle of red light appeared and Najarin led the two Princes into it. H'earring watched the red light swallow them and then sighed heavily.

They really didn't have that much time. As soon as Chaor or Maxxor found out that at least one of their sons had disappeared, they would rage across the city until they were found.

_Or_, H'earring thought, gulping as he made his way back up the stairs, _Until they find someone who knows where they've gone…!_

-The Gate-

The Gate was still dim but not quite as dark as it had been. The air smelled sweeter and there was a dull tinkling noise in the air, as though the tiny silver bells were far away in another room that was thickly padded. Najarin pressed a hand against the far wall and the dark outline of the door appeared there. He pried it open and beckoned the two boys to follow him.

"Welcome to Chaotic…" Fenrir murmured, looking around the ruins of Elliot's domain, "I wish we had never left."

"Would things have been much different if you had stayed?" Najarin asked in a soft voice, "But enough of these dark thoughts. Glamour, boys, come now."

The three Creatures closed their eyes and focused and when they opened them again, they were humans. Cerberus ran a hand down the side of his face, through his hair, and stared at his pink human fingers. It was weird to be Kaz again.

"Uh-oh." Fenrir said and Cerberus looked over at him, holding up the blue tunic that was slightly too big on his thin, human shoulders, "We're still wearing our Perim clothes. We can't go into the Human Realm looking like this, people will think we're nuts!"

"A problem that is easily solved." Najarin raised a hand and flung a handful of silver-white sparkling dust at the two of them. Cerberus could taste the magic in it.

Then he sneezed, recovered, and sneezed again.

"Gah! Warn us before you do that next time!" Fenrir growled and Cerberus looked over at him, rubbing some of the magic dust from his eyes, "Not to mention it was the most cliché thing I've ever seen you do!"

Fenrir—or Tom, as he was now—was dressed in a long sleeved, dark blue shirt, heavy, dark jeans, gray and white tennis shoes, and a thick, cerulean blue winter coat. He tucked his hands into the pockets of his coat and shrugged his shoulders, testing the feel. Then he muttered,

"I guess it _is_ winter there…"

Cerberus looked down at himself. He had on heavy black jeans, combat boots, a baggy black sweater with the words "I Am The Bad Guy" emblazed on it in white, and a dark red winter coat with a fur lined hood. He pulled the hood over his spiky hair and shoved his face into the fur lining it. It felt comfortable and nice. He pushed the hood back and found the other two looking at him expectantly.

"I…don't know if I can do it right but I'll give it my best shot." Cerberus led the way as they picked their way through the mess that had become Elliot's final resting place. When they came to the far wall, he hesitated, and then raised his hands. With his left index claw, he scored a bloody line across his right palm. Then, he smeared the blood over the cement before withdrawing.

Swirling runes of blue, gold, bronze, and red blazed brightly in the gloom for a moment or two and then, with a sucking noise, Chaotic was emptied.

Fenrir, Cerberus, and Najarin were now in the Human Realm.

-The Human Realm, Bravura Boulevard, the Shadowperish Mall parking lot-

"What a great place to put us, Kaz!" Tom snapped kicking snow off of his tennis shoes, "All the way at the back of the Mall parking lot in a _snow drift_!"

"Like I could control where we'd come out!" Kaz retorted hotly, his face red as he tried to brush the snow off his pants, "I don't know how that stupid thing works! I just know that the Seal Release lets me open the Gate!"

"Arguing is not going to make this go any faster." Najarin said calmly as he dusted off the front of the long, blue-black leath trench coat he was wearing. A long white scarf was wound around his neck and there was a white knit cap on his head but he looked like a young man of about thirty something with a five o' clock shadow, dark black eyes, no hair, and a diamond stud just above his left eyebrow.

"Say," Fenrir looked up at the human formed, OverWorld Muge, "What're we supposed to call you here? Najarin isn't exactly a common name."

"Nathaniel Stephano-Nostradamus Faelord." Najarin answered in a flat voice.

"Oh that's subtle." Muttered Kaz, finding a trace of sarcasm underneath the turmoil of his feelings.

"You know what, we're just going to call you Nate." Tom rolled his eyes, throwing his hands into the air, "Let's just…" He paused, "What—or who—are we even supposed to be looking for?"

"Well?" Nate looked around at Kaz.

"Wha—me!? You think _I _know what we're looking for!?"

"This _was_ your idea." Tom pointed out, "Do you at least know a good place to start?"

"How often does a Creature pick a human for a mate…" Kaz sighed, pulling his hood over his head and doing up his coat, "Probably not that often…"

"You are quite right about that." Nate responded, turning his head to look out across the parked cars, "As far as I know, I was the most recent one. And that was over a millennia ago."

"I say we start at the Academy." Tom said and when the other two looked at him he defended with, "I mean, there are a lot of kids there and if nobody there then at least we can branch out easier from there, right?"

"You've got a point…" Nate ran his fingers underneath his scarf, "I agree with Pri—Tom. We should start at this Academy you attended. Which way is it?"

"Follow us." Kaz motioned and set off across the parking lot towards the sidewalk. Tom and Nate trailed after him.

"What do we do when we find the person who's going to be the guardian?" Tom asked, "I mean, we can't exactly walk up to them and say, "Hey! We're from an alternate universe! Wanna guard it for us?" They'd lock us up!" He glanced Nate, "What did you…tell Elliot?"

"Elliot's Creature powers manifested early, when he was extremely young. I took him away from his mother and he grew up in Chaotic. He knew what he was from an early age." Nate answered slowly.

"Does the new guard have to be a hybrid?" Kaz asked over his shoulder, already shivering in the cold winter air.

"Yes." Nate paused briefly to look in the window of a small tea shop before carrying on, "They must be a part of both worlds."

"Then why don't we send a Creature in here every so often to make sure…you know…that there's a…well, I mean…" Tom flushed, suddenly aware of what he was about to say.

"Tell me, Thomas," Nate turned his hard black eyes on the human-formed OverWorlder, "How did you feel about humans when you first came here? Did you view them as equals? Were they worth your time?"

Tom thought back—thought back to that day eighteen years ago—and realized that, no, he had despised the humans. Despised them in a way that had been branded into him for ten years. Humans were weak, humans had no powers, humans were nothing compared to the strength of the Creatures of Perim. Tom hung his head and looked away.

"So what're we supposed to do!?" Kaz stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and got a stink eye from the lady walking past them, "If you're the last Cre—person who ever came here, then we've got nobody! We're here for nothing! It's useless! Everything is useless and nothing!" He shouted these last words and kicked at the snow piled up against the side of the building, looking frustrated.

"Kaz, are…you okay?" Tom took a step forward but Kaz turned his back to him.

"We'll talk later. I promise." Kaz said, "For now, let's just get to the Academy and find who we're looking for. If they even exist."

"All hope may not be lost." Tom rolled his eyes as his Nate said these words, "Gespaden vanished from Perim for a short period of time a few years before you were born. Our first thought was that he had been captured by the UnderWorlders—no offense Kazdan."

"None taken." Kaz muttered, keeping his back to the two.

"But then," Nate continued, "He returned to us, unharmed. When we questioned him about where he had been, he refused to say. I kept my suspicions to myself; if he had been in the Human Realm taking a mate…then I had no right to disclose his secret."

"Soooo, Gespaden's kid is in here somewhere?" Tom snorted, sending a forth a mist of gray as his breath fogged, "Well that's just perfect! They could be anywhere!"

"I doubt that they will be somewhere other than this city." Nate put a hand on Tom's shoulder, "If Gespaden does have a child, then they will only be a year or two older than yourselves. The door in Chaotic only opens into this city, I doubt that they have left. In fact, they may very well have been a student at your school."

"There it is…" Kaz raised an arm and pointed towards the high brick wall. Then he let his hand swing down to dangle at his side, "Uh, won't people…wonder where we've been?"

"Mm, yeah." Tom rubbed a hand through his hair, frowning, "I mean, the last time anyone saw us is when you got arrested for Aras' murder (Kaz winced) and we went off to the police station with you and the officers."

"You mean the police station that exploded?" Kaz muttered, dragging a hand over his face, "And let's not forget that government laboratory we were stuck in…that also got blown up."

"The four of you got into quite a lot trouble then." Nate sighed, shaking his head, "If it comes to it, I can get us out quickly but let's try not to arouse attention, hm?" The two boys nodded and the trio walked up to the front gate. After a brief moment of puzzlement, Tom remembered the number on his card and typed it into the computer.

The doors opened. Kaz felt an empty dread settle into the pit of his stomach; almost like a sick feeling of nostalgia. He swallowed and walked stiffly into the school grounds behind Tom and Nate.

_What if _she's_ still here?_ He wondered, _The last time we ever talked was…_ He hunched his shoulders and looked down at the snow crunching between his boots, _Was when she broke up with me. _

"Hey, Earth to Kaz!" Tom snapped his fingers in front of his companion's face and Kaz jerked back, startled from his thoughts.

"Uh, huh? What?"

"Got any feelings? Like something to point you in the direction of who we're supposed to find?" Tom asked. Kaz scowled and Tom shrugged, "What did you want me to say? "Use the Force, Kazdan!" You've gotta be—."

"Tom!? Tom Majors!? And Kaz!?" Shouted a voice and the two boys looked around to see a girl running towards them. Kaz paled dramatically and looked as though he would like to be anywhere but the Academy at the moment. Tom, not knowing what else to do, raised a hand and gave a little wave. The girl stopped in front of them, panting a little, "It _is_ you! I thought so!"

"Hi, Tiffany." Kaz said softly, not looking the girl in the eye.

"What happened to you two!? It was all over campus that you'd been arrested because of what happed to Aras! Oh, but then the police station you were at exploded and the news said that it was a former convict let out on good behavior! We all thought you'd _died_!" Tiffany gasped breathlessly, looking from one to the other, "Oh my gosh, Mercy was so upset!" Kaz flinched at the name, "She was crying for a really long time and was all sad because she wanted to tell you she was sorry for the way she acted and—!"

"That's quite enough, young lady." Nate stepped in at that moment, towering over Tiffany like a great, white tree. Tiffany stared up at him with wide eyes.

"Uh…Tiff, this is…Nate, he's our guardian." Tom offered, glancing at Kaz when Tiffany looked around him, expecting a longer story, "Um…that is…he…"

"They were sent back to the orphanage after some mishaps at the police station but the orphanage does not handle anyone older than sixteen. So I have custody of them until we find them a new home." Nate cut in again, saving their hides, "Now, if you'll excuse us…come, boys." And he set off, striding away with purpose. Tom and Kaz jogged to catch up with him, leaving behind a rather stunned Tiffany.

"Nice save." Tom said before looking back at Kaz, "So, do you know what we're supposed to—Kaz, you okay?" Kaz was standing in the middle of the walk, shivering violently, "Come on, it's not _that_ cold!"

"I d-d-don't know about y-you b-b-b-b-but it's s-s-so c-cold I can b-barely m-m-m-m-move!" Kaz's lips were turning blue and he had his arms wrapped around himself tightly, "It's b-b-been getting c-c-c-c-colder ever s-s-since we s-s-started heading here!" He squeezed his eyes shut as though by doing so he could keep more warmth inside him, "E-e-e-even my ins-s-sides are f-f-f-frozen!"

"Come on! We'll get you inside and get you some hot chocolate!" Tom reached out and grabbed his friend's shoulders only to jerk backwards, "Dude! Your coat is getting frosted in ice! Najarin, what the heck is going on!" Tom was so startled that he accidently slipped up and said the Muge's real name.

"Perhaps this is your body's way of telling you that our guardian is not here." Nate said, "Come, let's get out of here before you are frozen in place." The two of them helped Kaz back down the path and out of the front gate. As soon as they got farther down the road, Kaz stopped shivering so badly and was able to get warmth back into his limbs again.

"The Cothica seems to have left you with some rather painful side effects." Nate commented as they walked away from the Academy.

"You're telling me; the Seal Release, this…Guardian Sensing thing; and those are just the physical ones." Kaz snorted, "Oh man, I just realized how screwed up I am." He stopped walking suddenly and a man who'd been walking behind them walked around them with a muttered curse.

"What's wrong? Getting cold again?" Tom asked, hands in his pockets.

"No…it's a…warm feeling." Kaz sighed, a stream of fog rose past his lips, "I guess that means we're going in the right direction."

Tom suddenly laughed, "You're a game of Hot and Cold!"

"Shut up." Kaz spat, nudging past him to walk in front, "Like I _asked_ to be like this." And he stomped ahead of them.

Tom looked up at Nate, slightly stunned by the sudden dark turn his friend's emotions had taken, "What'd I say?"

"It's not you, I can assure you of that." Nate said, following after Kaz but far enough away so that the red-head couldn't hear what he was saying to Tom, "He's still trying to figure out how he should feel about who and what he is. Everything happened rather quickly for him and he wasn't sure how to react to it."

"Does it…does it have something to with what he said after that last battle?" Tom whispered, "About him saying he was grown in Ulmar's lab?"

"It is not my place to say." Nat answered flatly and that was all the answer Tom needed.

* * *

_Translations: Cruor Ut Patefacio Ianua – Blood That Opens Doors_

_How many times can I apologize? _

_Many, many times but it won't make up for how late this chapter is. So you guys can sit there with the knowledge that I feel bad for leaving this alone for so long. I just had no inspo. _

_Thank you for your patience. It really means a lot._

_There are still a few questions to answers and some loose ends to tie up: Who's Gespaden's child and the new guardian of Chaotic? Will Cerberus ever be able to accept who and what he is? Will EmptyHeart ever finish this fan fiction?_

_Just a few of life's persistent questions._

_As for myself…I'm going to go to bed. _

_Good night and…big balls. XD _


	31. Ut of Lux Lucis

_Here it is. _

_The last chapter._

_Aside from the epilogue…we're at the end.

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_

**Unus of Lux Lucis

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**

-The Human Realm-

"We're going even further from the center of town." Tom said, "We're headed into Public territory now. Who do we know in Public territory?"

"Who says it'll be someone we know?" Kaz shot back, "And we _do_ know someone."

"_You_ know someone." Tom retorted.

Nate sighed, shaking his head. The two boys had been picking on one another since they'd passed into the outskirts of the city. The OverWorld Muge wasn't even sure how the whole argument had begun and frankly he didn't care. He just wanted them to shut up. He was about to step in and teach them a lesson when Kaz suddenly stopped walking and turned to look at a house they had been moving past.

"That's Jo-Jo's house isn't it?" Tom asked, walking up to stand beside his friend.

"Yeah," Kaz answered and a stream of fog blew past his lips as he said the words, "And…my insides are on fire." The two boys looked at one another and then said at the same time,

"No way!"

Kaz ran up to the front door and knocked though his hand was shaking. Tom and Nate stood just behind him, Tom looking amazed and Nate blank-faced. But it wasn't Jo-Jo's mother who answered the door.

"Kaz!?"

"Mercy!?" Kaz stumbled backwards in shock, mouth hanging open, "What're you doing here!?"

"Mercy?" Jo-Jo appeared behind Kaz's ex-girlfriend, "Whoa! Majors and Kalinkas!? Talk about freaky!"

"I…I just…we were…and…" Kaz was at a complete loss for words.

"Come on inside, it's too cold out there to be talking on the doorstep." Jo-Jo ushered them in and, thinking it for the best, they entered. They shed their coats at the door and followed Jo-Jo and Mercy into the living room.

"Where have you guys _been_?" Mercy asked as they took seats, "I mean, we all thought you were—."

"Some misunderstandings." Nate said, cutting Mercy's inquiries off. He looked hard at Kaz and the boy cringed slightly before looking around a Mercy.

"Hey…Mercy," He licked his lips. His face was flushed and his eyes were red-splashed topaz, "What're your parents' names?"

"Uuuhhh…" Mercy glanced at Jo-Jo who shrugged a shoulder, "My mom's name is Allison and my dad's name is Drake. Why?"

"N-no reason." Kaz muttered.

"What about you, Joey?" Tom asked and the older boy scowled at the nickname.

"My mom's Eve and my dad's Richard." Jo-Jo responded, "But my sister and I have different fathers." The three travelers from Perim visibly tensed but the two humans didn't notice, "Richard is my sister's father. My real dad's a no-show. Left when I was little; I don't even remember him. No pictures, no nothing. Only his name: Gregor."

Kaz shuddered suddenly and rubbed his hands up and down his arms.

"You never did like the cold." Mercy smiled and shook her head, "Is it okay if I make some hot coco, Jo-Jo?"

"Yeah, sure." The older boy waved his hand towards the kitchen, "Can you make some for all of us?"

"No prob." The girl stood up and walked out of the room. As soon as she was out of earshot Jo-Jo rounded on Kaz, glaring at him fiercely.

"What's going on here!?" He hissed, "You get arrested for killing some boy at that stuck-up Academy, then the police station you were dragged to blows up, and then you and your four friends vanish off the face of the Earth! And now you show up out of no where and ask about our families!? Not to mention Mr. Tall-and-Silent over there…" He eyed Nate distrustfully, "What are you two up to?"

"I think we were looking for you." Kaz said in all honesty.

"You _think_?" Jo-Jo echoed, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Your father's real name was Gespanden." Tom said and Kaz slapped him on the arm. Tom punched him back and Kaz's eyes flashed brilliant red. Jo-Jo noticed.

"What the hell was that!?" He pointed at Kaz, "Your eyes just changed color!"

"Shhhhhh!" Kaz made hushing motions with his hands, casting a worried glance towards the kitchen, "Look, Jo-Jo, the reason we vanished is because we went back to our own world! We're not from here!"

"Are you trying to tell me that you guys are _aliens_!?" Jo-Jo laughed harshly, "That's gotta be the stupidest thing I ever—." He stopped mid-sentence because Nate had stood up and was looking down at him curiously, "What?"

"Gespaden's son…?" The man murmured and stretched out a hand, "We shall see."

"What're you—?" Jo-Jo began but his words ceased as Nate placed a hand on his forehead. Jo-Jo eyes rolled back and he slumped in his seat.

"Kaz! Go distract Mercy!" Tom whispered.

"Why me!?"

"Because you're her ex!"

"What the—that's not a reason!"

"Just do it before she comes back in here and calls the police on us!"

"Eh, alright…" Kaz stood up, his stomach twisting, and forced himself to walk into the kitchen. Mercy had her back to the door, busily stirring chocolate and milk together in a heated pan.

"Ah, Mercy?" She didn't even look at him, just made a sort of "mm?" noise in the back of her throat, "Um, I'm sorry."

"For what?" She still wasn't looking at him.

"For the way I reacted when you broke up with me."

"I don't care about that." She said in a clipped tone. Then her voice softened a bit, "I just want to know what really happened to Aras. The police say they're with holding the information because the case was delicate but that's just a fancy way of saying they don't know what happened." She finally turned around to look at him, "So tell me what happened. The truth."

"The…truth?" He repeated, throat constricting, "All of it?"

"Yes."

"I don't know what happened to Aras."

"You're lying."

"How do you know?" He snorted, frowning at her.

"Because you always do that weird thing with your fingers when you lie." She pointed to his right hand and he glanced down. His fingers were twisted around the fabric of pants and he hadn't even noticed. He quickly let go.

"You really wanna know?" He said in a quiet voice.

"Yes."

"For real?"

"Yes." She sounded impatient.

"I…" He almost told her. He almost told her everything.

Almost.

"Kaz! Let's go!" Tom shouted. He sounded frantic.

"Bye Mercy!" He turned to run out of the room but she grabbed his arm and held it tightly. He tugged and she let go.

"I'll see you around!" She called as he headed for the kitchen door.

He froze, then, just for a moment, and said,

"No. Not anymore you won't."

And then he was gone.

Mercy ran out of the kitchen only to find the sitting room empty. Tom, Kaz, their mysterious companion…gone.

_Wait…wasn't there…someone else?_ For a brief moment she saw in her mind's eye a tall boy, slightly older than her, with a happy smile and strange affection towards everyone around him.

Then she figured she must have made him up.

-Chaotic-

Jo-Jo said nothing.

He simply sat there, staring down at the cement between his feet.

Nate had thrown him over his shoulder and they had left without a word. Ducking into an alley between a couple of houses to open the path to Chaotic. Jo-Jo had been speechlessly conscious through the whole thing and had said nothing when they'd brought him into Chaotic.

The thing about hybrids was that they weren't supposed to exist. So the second Jo-Jo had left the Human Realm, it was like he had never existed.

"Who are you really?" The older boy asked in a soft, frightened voice, still not looking up from the floor, "Why'd you kidnap me? What do you want?"

"Jo-Jo…" Kaz murmured, "I…" He glanced at Nate and Tom.

"If we're going to tell him, it should be now." Nate said.

"Or," Tom said, holding up a hand so that it was level with his face, "We could show him." Jo-Jo glanced up and yelped in surprise. Tom's fingernails turned black and became lightly pointed, dark violet markings faded in on his face, a white streak grew down the side of his face, his ears became pointed, and his skin turned bottle green. He shed his clothes, standing only in his pants, and grinned at Jo-Jo showing his sharpened teeth. Jo-Jo paled and he gaped at Fenrir in shock.

"T-T-Tom?" His voice came out in a squeek.

"Actually, it's Fenrir, Prince of the OverWorld." Fenrir said with a grin.

"Way to go, Fen, that was _so_ subtle. " Kaz muttered, "Guess there isn't much of a choice now…" He too took off his winter coat and shirt, dropping them on the floor. Then he let go of his Glamour. His hair turned black, the lightning streak through it became orange, and his teeth stretched into dagger sharp fangs. The spines stretched out of his upper arms as his skin turned crimson, the hair rippling down his back, his horns growing out the side of his head, and his tail curling out behind him. Beyond the two boys, Najarin had reverted as well.

"Wha-wha-what _are_ you guys!?" Jo-Jo was nearly screaming, pressing himself back against the chair he was in.

"Creatures, from Perim." Najarin said in his deep, soothing voice, "And you…you are half Creature. Gespaden, a Creature from Prince Fenrir's tribe, crossed over into the Human Realm nearly twenty years ago. No doubt he met your mother there. What resulted was you. A hybrid."

"I must be having a nightmare. A very _vivid_ nightmare." Jo-Jo looked at his hands, "You're all…I don't know….this is…just…"

"Jo-Jo." The older boy—the hybrid—turned to look up at Cerberus, "I can show you if you want."

"What?"

"Cerberus?" Fenrir took a step forward but Najarin grabbed his shoulder and held him back. Fenrir looked again; Cerberus' eyes were bright red.

"I can show you everything; Perim, the Creatures, our past, what you're supposed to do. The Cothica—that is, our power source—I can channel it and it will give you everything you need."

Jo-Jo shook his head, disbelieving, "This is all completely insane."

"I felt that way about you when I first entered the Human Realm." Cerberus answered stiffly, "But if you don't help us then your world is in just as mch danger as ours."

"Why should I!?"

"Because otherwise _this_ will happen to your world too!" Cerberus shouted, losing his temper. He thrust his hand out in Jo-Jo's face and white light poured from it. Fenrir's hair crackled with power that was being channeled through his best friend and he felt Najarin tense beside him. There was a sudden crack and Cerberus stumbled back, a hand to his head. Fenrir grabbed him to hold him upright but Cerberus shook him off, growling.

"That stinking Cothica!" He snarled, eyes blazing in anger, "It used me again! Stop doing that!" He shouted at the ceiling.

"Cerberus?" It was Jo-Jo. Everyone looked around at him, "That's your real name? And you're royalty?"

"You…know?" Fenrir asked, curious at the hybrid's sudden change in attitude.

"I…I think so." Jo-Jo stood up slowly, "But I don't understand any of it…"

"And that's where I come in." Najarin stepped forward, "You two," He gestured to Fenrir and Cerberus, "Go back to Perim, I'll handle everything else from here."

Cerberus nodded once and waved to Jo-Jo. Jo-Jo waved back slightly with a blank expression. Then he and Fenrir turned and walked out of Chaotic, through the Gate, and back into Perim.

-Perim, Two Weeks Later, The Danian Water Reservoir-

"Hey, it's not half bad down here!" Fenrir said loudly, splashing around in the shallows of one of the large pools that made up the Reservoir.

"I'm taking that as a compliment." Seraphim muttered, perched above the pool on an out-cropping of rock.

"I can't believe you two can take all of that so easily." Cerberus tapped the surface of the water with a clawed toe, paused, and then waded in, running his hands over the water again and again, "I mean, I just told you that I'm a walking weapon of mass destruction and the first thing out of your mouth is that the Danian Water Reservoir's an okay place?"

"Ease up, you're still Cerb!" Anubis pounced on the UnderWorld Prince and they both fell under the water with an enormous splash. Cerberus came up sputtering, his formally spiky black hair flattened and hanging in his dark brown eyes. He glowered at Anubis who'd just reappeared from under the water, laughing as he did so.

"See!" The Mipedian Prince gestured at Cerberus, splashing water in his direction, "Only you can make that funny face you make when you're angry about something!" He laughed again and turned his back on Cerberus, sweeping the water with his tail so that a huge wave of it washed over the UnderWorlder.

"You'll pay for that!" Cerberus shouted, launching himself at the Mipedian only to collide with Fenrir who'd been swimming around the pool. The three boys ended up tussling in the water with one another and when one of them managed to splash Seraphim, she hollered in fury which only made them laugh.

Hours later, Fenrir, Cerberus, and Anubis had all collapsed on the rocky beach of the pool and were finally settled down. Cerberus rolled onto his back and tucked his hands behind his head, starring up at the vast ceiling with a blank expression on his face.

"Whatcha' thinkin' of Cerb?" Anubis asked, laying on his side with his head propped up on one arm.

"I dunno, the future, I guess." The red-skinned UnderWorlder said softly, "I mean, what now?"

"Clean up." Fenrir answered, "There's still a lot of work to be done around Perim; forests to replant, cities and villages to rebuild, and alliances to work out. A lot to do…"

"I meant past that." Cerberus said.

"What, the Cothica didn't tell you?" Seraphim asked from where she was sitting at the water's edge beside the boys. When Cerberus shook his head she said, "Then it means we've got to figure it out for ourselves."

"Kinda scary when you think about it." Anubis murmured, rubbing a finger up and down one of the bronze spikes on his forehead, "I mean, we don't know what's coming. What if something worse than the M'arrillians shows up?"

"We can handle it." Fenrir said with a grin, "I mean, come on, we've got a genuine super hero on our side!" He slapped Cerberus shoulder.

"I am _not_ a super hero!" Cerberus snapped, embarrassed.

"You're dramatic enough to be one." Seraphim said nonchalantly.

Anubis howled with laughter and so did Fenrir. After a moment or two, Seraphim and Cerberus couldn't help but join in.

And even though they had suffered pain and sorrow and death and terror and heartbreak…

…what mattered was that they were still able to laugh.

* * *

_Translations: Unus of Lux Lucis – One of Light, Privatus – Released_

_Since I won't be doing an A/N in the epilogue, I'd like to take the time here to thank everyone who reviewed this fan fiction! So here goes nothing!_

_Thank you to: Syuveil, NinjaDragon,_ _MidnightVupecula, alienphantom, Forestfairyunicorn, Narutos sis and Itachis girl, Lady Snowstorm, Chaora 01, vysox's twin sister, Werecat Warrior, Finny-kun Goddess, RoseAnne, flareflight17, brave kid, and lunazephyrmon!_

_You all are wonderfully awesome and thanks for sticking through with this thing to the very end! It means a lot to me! _

_Live long and prosper! XD (sorry, I just watched the new Star Trek movie today)_

_Well, I can't thank you enough! I'm kinda sad to see this fan fiction go, as I am with all my writings, but it lived a good, long life. It was a pleasure working on this fan fiction and I had a lot of fun doing it. I hope you guys will continue to stick around for my other writings, you're all wonderful people!_

_Good luck in everything you do!_

_-EmptyHeart/HosekiDragon _


	32. Privatus

**Privatus**

_It began in a dark time._

_Four lives had been cast into the turning gears of war by Destiny's cruel hand._

_But they had hope._

_A Golden Chain bound them together through hardship and tears._

_A Brilliant Light illuminated their way through the dark terrors they faced._

_A Strong Heart guided them despite the heartbreak and pain they suffered. _

_A Lost Soul gave them a reason to keeping going forward._

_And even though they were hurt and fell numerous times…_

_Even though they lost so much to war and bloodshed…_

_They rebuilt their world and led it—together—into a bright, new future where untold wonders and mysteries awaited them. _


End file.
